Southwest Central District

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Written by Ronna Mason

Each year the Elks National Foundation sponsors an Americanism essay contest for students in fifth through eighth grade. Lodge winners then move on to the district level and then possibly to the state and national level. This year's theme is, "How Can Patriotism be Demonstrated?" Sebring Elks Lodge #1529 received five submissions from Sebring Middle School; history teacher, Linda Lakes, promoted the contest at the school. All essays were very well written and the committee's task of choosing the winner was not an easy one. On Dec. 15, the winners were chosen and awards were distributed. Pictured are Wainetta Holmes, Exalted Ruler; Linda Lakes; Harper Schuknecht, first place winner who was presented $100; Leah Koehler, second place winner who was presented $50; Jayce Graham, Ava Barnes, and Sami Rather who were presented $20 Walmart gift certificates; and Diane Morse, Americanism Chair.

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Written by Mary Lou Scribner, PER

Brandon Lodge held a brief ceremony Dec. 14 in the morning to present appreciation gifts for local law enforcement officers and others at the sheriff’s department. Lodge members donated 136 gift cards from various restaurants and stores with a total value of $1,925 along with an individual thank you letter for each officer. These were presented to Sergeant Dawn Reisinger by Mary Lou Scribner, PER, chair of this event, and Mark Vargo, Exalted Ruler. Each letter also included an invitation to the officer and their family to stop by the lodge one Friday evening and enjoy a meal at the lodge’s expense. Members see this as a great opportunity for them to personally thank the officers and for the officers to see what The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is all about. Gift cards were also presented to the two law enforcement officers who are members of the lodge. “This was a small token from the Brandon Lodge and its members to show appreciation to our law enforcement for their sacrifices and for willingly putting their lives in harm’s way to protect us and our communities,” said Scribner. Sergeant Reisinger addressed the members and said she was moved by the outpouring of support and thanked the members on behalf of her officers for their thoughtfulness and support, especially through a year that has been most challenging for them. She stated that this generosity and support meant a lot to her and to her officers. Pictured are Vargo and Scribner presenting the gift cards to Sergeant Dawn Reisinger.

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Written by Judy Wise

For the past seven years, longtime Plant City Elks Lodge member Philip Williams has held a toy drive for community children in need in early December. This year, he and his sons, Jeremy and Justin, along with another longtime member, David Brewington, decided to hold the toy drive at the lodge Dec. 5. Lodge members as well as members of the community dropped off gifts for three days prior to the event and until 10 p.m. the night of the event. Donations included more than 40 new bicycles, and the estimated value of all the gifts was more than $5,000. Philip Williams works with teachers in local schools and finds families in need and makes sure they are the recipients of the gifts. Pictured seated are Jeremy Williams and Kenny Goodwien, Exalted Ruler. Standing are David Brewington and Justin Williams. Philip Williams is not pictured as he was called away for an emergency. The second picture shows the final amount of gifts at the end of the evening. Goodwien volunteered to be at the lodge when people dropped off gifts and to oversee the last night of the event. He and his wife, Tina, stayed afterward to clean up and find storage for the toys.

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Written by Ronna Mason

Sebring Elks Lodge #1529 continued to support its local food bank, Highlands Food Bank. Since July when the lodge donated its $2,000 Elks National Foundation Spotlight Grant along with 265 pounds of food to help fill their emptying shelves, they have collected an additional 414 pounds of food. Dedicated to supporting the community, the lodge will continue collecting food from their members as well as from non-Elks. This community project gets the community involved. As a result, two of the lodge’s faithful non-Elk charity bingo players volunteered to help with this project—Joyce Fifield and Marilyn Glazier.

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Written by Mary Lou Scribner

Robin Rutzke, Brandon Lodge’s Inner Guard, and Sharon Hammersla, District Vice President and Brandon Lodge member, chaired another beneficial food drive for their community. Members were asked to drop off food donations at the lodge Nov. 14 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., and 25 Elks and nine non-Elks did just that. Food donations totaled more than 1,800 pounds with a value of more than $2,600. In addition, members donated a total of $230 with instructions to purchase more food. “The success of the food drive is due to Elk members uniting for a common cause. It begins with Robin Rutzke and Sharon Hammersla sparking an idea, then PER Rick Weigand’s commitment to be there to open the lodge early on a Saturday morning, then member Beth Benham blitzing the members with electronic announcements about the food drive…and ends with DVP Sharon delivering the food to the Nativity Church local food bank,” says Mary Lou Scribner, lodge member. Scribner helps organize the loading of Hammersla’s vehicle with the food donations. Lodge members remain dedicated to community involvement despite dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. Pictured with the packed vehicle are Scribner, Hammersla and Rutzke. Member Kathy Brogli shows the amount of donations received.