Northeast District

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Written by Tracy Carroll

Green Cove Springs Elks Lodge #1892 participated in the annual Green Cove Springs Police Department's trunk or treat event Oct. 27. Florida Elks Children’s Therapy Services therapist Rae Montgomery assisted lodge members with giving out treats as well as drug awareness ribbons and information about Elks services. Over 2,600 community members enjoyed a fun-filled holiday evening.

Green Cove Springs Lodge Exalted Ruler, Lucie Barnette; FECTS therapist Rae Montgomery and local families enjoy the Green Cove Springs PD trunk or treat event Oct. 27.

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Written by Linda Califf

On July 21, Gainesville Elks Lodge #990 held a Summer Splash Family Fun Day to benefit autism. The lodge’s outside areas were filled with all kinds of activities including a large water slide, a bounce house, a slip and slide, kiddie pools, a dunking booth, face painting, and a ping-pong ball toss. Free food was provided along with lots of free ice cream! Donations were accepted to benefit CARD, the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities. This annual lodge event is funded by an Elks National Foundation Gratitude Grant.

Gainesville Elk member Jerry Sartain takes a turn in the dunking booth while attendee Evelynn June Brown enjoys the water slide.

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Written by Tracy Carroll

Green Cove Springs Elks Lodge #1892 used its Promise Grant to provide guitar lessons for students throughout the summer. Ten students met every Tuesday for seven weeks for group lessons and lunch and then treated the lodge members to a recital. Project coordinator, Jeannie Calhoun, used the grant to provide the lessons and outfit each of the students with a guitar, music stand, tuner and book.

Instructor, Curt Townes; Green Cove Springs Exalted Ruler, Lucie Barnette; and project coordinator, Jeannie Calhoun, are pictured with the guitar students preparing for a lodge recital.

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Written by Gene Rittenhouse & Tracy Carroll

On June 5, Green Cove Springs Lodge used an Elks National Foundation Beacon Grant to promote the Green Cove Springs Public Library’s opening of the summer children’s program. This was the lodge’s third year of promoting this program. The event’s purpose was to encourage children to sign up for the special library programs for children of all ages.

There were 119 children accompanied by 49 adults in attendance and 25 volunteers. After registering, each child went through the following stations: registration for summer programs, a book station where they received a free age-specific book, an ice cream station, a craft station, a balloon toy maker’s station, a face-painting station and a corn hole game area.

Green Cove Springs Lodge members Karen Pitts, Willie Pitts and Joe Boyd give out age-specific books to each attendee at the opening of the local library’s summer children’s program.

Green Cove Springs Library began their MeeperBot Training Program using MeeperBot robots provided by Green Cove Springs Lodge through ENF Beacon Grant matching funds from the Florida State Elks Association. The first training session included building Lego block tops for the robotic platforms, instruction on controlling the platforms with Kindle Fires and driving their bots down a table to knock down bowling pins. The next sessions included learning to program the platforms to perform different tasks automatically. Librarian and lodge member, Jennifer Parker, was the main instructor of the 26 attendees while parents and siblings observed.

An attendee drives her MeeperBot down the course using a Kindle Fire to control it at a Green Cove Springs Library class. The robots were provided by Green Cove Springs Lodge.

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Written by Green Cove Springs Elks

Green Cove Springs Lodge’s charity bingo donated $300 to the Green Cove Springs Baseball/Softball Association to aid the 8U T-Ball team going to the Florida state championship tournament. The team won third place.