West Central District

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Written by New Port Richey Elks

On June 27, New Port Richey Elks Lodge member Lyn Dexter held a fundraiser at a meeting of the West Coast Claims Association which consists of independent insurance adjusters and raised $275 for Elks National Foundation. Pictured are Brenda Jones, secretary of the association; Lyn Dexter, president; Marilee Mills, PER who received the donation on behalf of the lodge; and Ramon Flores, vice president.

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Written by May Graci

On Sept. 24, St. Petersburg Lodge donated $1,000 to Azalea Youth Soccer. The home fields for the program are located at the Walter Fuller Soccer Complex in St. Petersburg, Fla. The lodge is a gold sponsor of the Azalea Youth Soccer League and the funds are used to sponsor three teams. Azalea Youth Soccer uses the funds for whichever teams don’t have sponsors for uniforms. The league’s recreational soccer program is for boys and girls of all skill levels ages 2-18. The soccer program is intended to teach the game of soccer while building players’ skills in an environment that encourages an understanding of sportsmanship and teamwork.

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Written by May Graci

On the third Monday of the month from April through September, St. Petersburg Lodge donated the use of its pool to Boy Scout Troop #334 and averaged 30-36 participants. On the third Tuesday of the month from April through September, Boy Scout Troop #305 used the pool and averaged 13-15 participants. Both troops not only held their meetings pool side but also swam in order to earn their swim merit badges. The goal is to teach scouts to swim with greater ease and efficiency as well as to keep them safe in and around the water. To earn the Eagle Scout award, a scout must earn a swimming, cycling or hiking merit badge.

St. Petersburg Lodge also donated the use of their pool on alternating Thursdays from April through September to St. Petersburg’s Police Athletic League (PAL) youth programs on a monthly basis. An average of 25-27 at-risk youth had a kids day at the pool during each visit. St. Petersburg’s PAL mission is crime prevention through athletics. PAL serves youth ages 5-18 through various programs and creates a safe space for youth to develop healthy lifestyles, foster good relationships with law enforcement and prevent crime.

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Written by May Graci

On May 14, St. Petersburg Elks Lodge #1224 awarded two $1,500 scholarships to Tyre Hill who will be attending UCF and Julia Finster who will be attending Notre Dame. Each student made remarks during the lodge presentation evening. Pictured with Tyre and Julia is PER Cathy Shriver.

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Written by May Graci

In the hustle and bustle of nabbing deals and buying new clothes for the new school year, an often overlooked reality is that many kids are without the basic back-to-school necessities such as pens and pencils, notebooks, crayons, handwriting paper, watercolors, colored pencils, glue sticks, scissors, highlighters, plastic supply boxes, dividers, tissues, hand sanitizer and gallon-sized zip-top bags. To help give children the tools they need to succeed, St. Petersburg Lodge and its members donated supplies that were distributed to two neighboring schools, Azalea Elementary and Westgate Elementary. Each school received over $300 worth of school supplies which will go to teachers and students. Exalted Ruler, Dawn Elaine Lieber, said, “We know there are several families in these schools that have unfortunate financial needs and we just want to give the kids a good start. Something as simple as having school supplies really helps to make sure our kids are happy as they start the new school year.”

Yaritza Ramos, Family/Community Liaison, accepts school supply donations for Azalea Elementary from St. Petersburg Lodge from member Debby Schmid and Exalted Ruler, Dawn Elaine Lieber.

Fifth-grade teacher Tara McClintick is pictured with St. Petersburg Lodge members Debby Schmid and Dawn Elaine Lieber as they deliver school supplies from the lodge to Westgate Elementary.

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Written by May Graci

St. Petersburg Lodge has been donating the use of their pool on a monthly basis to Dive Care, a nonprofit Florida corporation. Dive Care is comprised of a group of certified scuba diving instructors and dive buddies who teach prospective divers and dive instructors. Their programs are available to any child, adult or veteran with a disability with the intention of providing both physical and psychological therapeutic value to each person.