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Exalted Ruler’s Column – April 2018

Planning is well under way for the next year at Eureka Elks Lodge #652! Thank you for the opportunity you have given me to lead the lodge in 2018-2019. It is a most humbling experience to become an Exalted Ruler and I promise to fulfill your trust in me to the best of my ability. The theme for this next year is: "Together, We’re Elks."It takes all of us pulling together in the same direction to make our lodge enjoyable for our members, their families and friends.

Thank you to my fellow chair officers who have stepped up to the plate to serve you: Gwen Carroll, Esteemed Leading Knight; Kathy Payne, Esteemed Loyal Knight; Scott Reinsmith, Esteemed Lecturing Knight; Jim Kloss, Lodge Es-quire; Casey Stephens, Lodge Chaplain; Eddie Morgan, Lodge Inner Guard; Dennis Doty, Lodge Tiler; and Dale Colson, Lodge Organist. Of course, my spe-cial thanks go to Ernie Nunes, Lodge Secretary; Gary Payne, Lodge Treasurer; and Nina Strang, Lodge Clerk. I’m looking forward to working with Nina, who is also the new President of the Emblems Club. Welcome to Terry Long and Bob Gish as they join Mark Householter, Marta Martinez and Kevin Christie on our Board of Trustees.

My heart-felt thanks go out to Sherie and Kurt Bialous, PERs and our Lodge Ritual Team’s coaches. With their guidance and encouragement, your Ritual Team will be competing in the District’s competition in Ukiah at the end of this month and we have a chance to bring home the gold!

We all owe a great big thank you to all our volunteers, because they are the back-bone of the Lodge. Without our volunteer bartenders, volunteer kitchen crews, servers, cashiers, ticket-takers and tilers, this Lodge could not function. When you’re at the Lodge, please take the time to thank these hard-working volunteers. Of course, you can also volunteer. We need you!

Please enjoy your Lodge. The Exalted Ruler’s suggestion box will continue to be placed in the hallway and I would appreciate any suggestions you may have to make this Lodge even better!

Finally, a very special thank you to my wife, Karen, who will be by my side as we progress through the year. Thanks again for the opportunity to serve you!

Dennis Hunter, Exalted Ruler

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Redwood Roamers – April 2018

The Roamers held their monthly meeting on March 7th and topics for discussion were the up-coming outings for 2018. The first outing will be to Fort Bragg, May 3rd -6th. The second outing will be to Lewiston Old Bridge RV Park, May 31st-June 3rd. Our third outing will be to Reedsport, Oregon. June 15th-18th. We have other outings scheduled to McCloud RV Park in mid July, Gold Beach, Oregon in August and Florence, Oregon in August. We are looking forward to Apple Hill in September and Benbow RV Park in November. We are all excited to get going. If you are interested in joining the Roamers or any of the outings, our next meeting, will be April 4th, at 4:30 in the Lodge. Please feel free to attend.

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Meet You 2018 Officers

Eureka Elks Lodge No. 652 held it 117th annual Installation of officers on March 24th. The lodge was founding in 1901 and first met in old town. In the 1920’s it moved to the corner of H and 5th Streets and in the mid 1970’s moved to its current location on Herrick Ave. The lodge is one of the most active lodge’s in California with over 1400 members. It is not only active with local charities but the lodge is used for many community events.

Pictured from left to right, front row: Secretary, Ernie Nunes; Lecturing Knight, Scott Riensmith; Leading Knight, Gwen Carroll; Exalted Ruler, Dennis Hunter; Loyal Knight, Kathy Payne; Treasurer, Gary Payne and Organist, Dale Colson. Back row: Tiler, Dennis Doty; Inner Guard, Eddie Morgan; Chaplain, Casey Stephens; Esquire, Jim Kloss and Trustees, Marta Martinez, Terry Long, Mark Householter and Bob Gish; not pictured, Kevin Christie.

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Officer Installation

Dennis Hunter (pictured) will be installed as Exalted Ruler of Eureka Elks Lodge No. 652 on Saturday March 24th. Dennis is a long time resident of Eureka and has served on many boards and committees in the county. Some of the organizations that he has worked with are Keet-TV, City of Eureka Financial Advisory, Reading Services of the Redwoods, Ingomar Club Board of Director, Commissioner of Humboldt Bay Harbor, Executive Board Easter Seals of Northern California, American Cancer Society, Eureka Rotary Club, Eureka Chamber of Commerce, Redwood Region Economic Development Commission, Humboldt County Convention and Visitors Bureau and Humboldt Masonic Lodge No. 79. Installation will be at 5:00pm with social and a Roasted New York Strip dinner to follow. Cost $20.00 per person. For your reservation contact the lodge 442-6652 no later than Monday March 19th.

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Volunteer Appreciation Dinner Recap

Eureka Elks Lodge held its annual Awards Dinner for Volunteer of the Year, Elk of the Year and Officer of the Year on March 10th. The majority of the work at the lodge is accomplished by members volunteering their time and talents. It is very hard to choose those members for the award, out of the many who volunteer. This year was no different. The Exalted Ruler, Jennifer Cory, thanked the 150 volunteers who attended the dinner for all their hard work.

The volunteer of the year did not go to a single member but to a couple, Dan and Angie Jenkinson, for the many hours they put in working in the kitchen. Pictured from left to right: Gwen Morris, accepted the Award for Elk of the Year, Vicki Matthews (not pictured); Volunteers of the year, Dan & Angie Jenkinson; Officer of the year, Chaplain, Jim Kloss and Jennifer Cory, Exalted Ruler.

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Exalted Ruler’s Column – March 2018

Greetings all! It is with mixed emotions that I write my final Herd Talk article as Exalted Ruler. This year has been an amazing journey and I am so thankful for all the wonderful people that I encountered along the way. There are so many individuals within our lodge that supported me and guided me through this last year. I am forever grateful for all the memories, Good Times, smiles, and laughter.

Please remember to sign up for the volunteer dinner on March 10th. This is a fabulous opportunity to be recognized for all the hard work that you have done within our lodge. Even if you haven’t volunteered you can come out and show your support to those that do. Another one of my final events is the children’s Easter party also on March 10th. I’m looking forward to both of these events. I spent 7 years going through all the officer chairs and now I get to look forward to being a Past Exalted Ruler and enjoying continue camaraderie with all of you! Thank you all again for a fulfilling and blest year!

Jennifer Cory, Exalted Ruler

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Message from the Leading Knight – March 2018

There are many events coming up in March, including some great dinners! So be sure to check your calendar in this month’s Herd Talk.

Foremost on my radar is Step-up Night on Wednesday, March 21st where Chair Officers advance to their new Chairs and initiate new members. We’re all a little nervous about our new roles and could use your support. The Installation of Officers and dinner takes place on Saturday, March 24th. All of these events provide an opportune time to come to the Lodge and meet fellow members and your Lodge officers. Details on both of these events appear elsewhere in this Herd Talk.

Since this is my final article as your Leading Knight, I want to thank you for all your support throughout our year. Our Purple Pig dinner, held on February 11th, was a great success! We all raised over $1,600 which will go toward the California-Hawaii Elks’ Major Project. These funds go to the aid of children with disabilities throughout both states. Kathy Payne, her kitchen crew, and servers provided us with a delicious pork dinner. A special thanks goes out to Dan, Shelley and crew from Rendezvous Music for counting up the cash! In fact, Dan put in an extra $30 to get us over the $1,600 plateau.

Dennis Hunter, Leading Knight

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Trustees Corner – March 2018

The Trustees have been working on the budget for next fiscal year, which begins April 1, 2018. The budget will be posted on the lodge bulletin board for your review.

March is a very busy month at the lodge. Kevin and crew will be in the kitchen for the Wild Game Feed on Sunday, March 4th. The Children’s Easter Party, which is a little early this year, will be on March 10th begin-ning at 10 AM. The Easter bunny has promised to visit and there will be fun, games and treats. The Volunteer Appreciation dinner is also on March 10th with cocktails at 5 and dinner, which I believe is CYOS, at 6 PM. I, and other lodge officers, will be working in the kitchen so our volunteers can relax and enjoy dinner. We often forget to let volunteer know how much we appreciate their service to the lodge. Please remember to say “Thank You For Your Service” next time you encounter a volunteer. Remember, we would not exist without our volunteers.

The Installation of Officers will occur on Saturday, March 24th. Please show your support for our incoming Exalted Ruler Dennis Hunter and his officers by attending this event. My term as Chairman of the Board of Trustees ends on March 31, 2018. I would like to thank all of those who offered advice and guidance during my term.

Fraternally yours,
Mark Householter, Chairman, Board of Trustees

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Veteran’s Corner – March 2018

Thursday Feb 15th was the first training session for veteran companion animals and their owners. This training was made possible by receipt of the ENF Anniversary Grant in the amount of $1000. The lodge added another $500 from the Veteran’s Account, and when added to the grant, covers the cost of training for 36 veterans. One thing that was pretty obvious to this reporter was that the trainer trained the owners and the dogs just followed along.

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Redwood Roamers – March 2018

At the February Roamers meeting on Feb. 7th we discussed the outings nominated for this year. We came up with 16 places Roamers want to go to. The first outing will be to Fort Bragg, at Promo RV Park, on May 3rd thru the 6th. This is when Fort Bragg has their Rhododendron festival. We have 18 RV’s signed up to go. The next will be to Lewiston Old Bridge RV Park, on May 31th thru June 3rd, with 16 RV’S signed up so far. This is when Lewiston has their peddlers fair. We are actively working on the other places we want to go to. If any Elk members are interested, please feel free to attend our next meeting.