The Moose Jaw Elks Lodge finds itself in much the same situation service clubs throughout the city and all over Canada are going through.
Just how do you meet your fundraising and donation obligations when all the fundraising events you have planned are being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic?
And especially when some of your largest fundraisers are in the summer months?
The answer at the moment is direct donations — far from an ideal situation, but one the group plans to manage as best as possible.
“Unfortunately there are a lot of events that we have in summer that are being cancelled, so it’s looking like we’re going to have to take the summer off, but we’re still accepting donations,” said longtime Elks member and club organizer Harold Claffey.
“We use the money well and we use it in the city, every year we give some to the food bank, some to Hunger in Moose Jaw, some to the Salvation Army Christmas fun. We put a tree in the Festival of Trees every year, we run a concession stand at ParkArt in Crescent Park… there’s always something that’s coming up that we’re working on.”
That would be the case right now, normally — in addition to ParkArt, the Elks traditionally run a concession at the Show and Shine held out at 15 Wing and last year did the same for the revival of the Saskatchewan Air Show, one of their largest local fundraisers to date.
“The Air Show, we just went nuts. We made a marvelous amount of money over the two days there,” Claffey said. “It was a long line-up both days and it was incredible.”
All told, the Elks annually donate around $20,000 to local causes, a number the Air Show helped push closer to $30,000 this past year.
Taking away the summer events will naturally put a dent in those funds, but the Elks are hoping the always charitable spirit of Moose Jaw will help with their call for direct donations, which can be sent to 325 Fourth Avenue Southwest, Box 315.
Supporters can also check out the Elks ‘Help Children Hear’ provincial lottery, from which proceeds will go back to Lodges throughout Saskatchewan.
Of course, this COVID-19 outbreak isn’t going to last forever, and when the time comes to hold major fundraising once again, volunteers and new members will be more than welcome.
The club is currently around 50 members strong. For information on how to join and what the organization is all about, visit their website at www.moosejawelks.com. Alternatively, anyone interested can pop down to Flattop Automotive and have a chat with Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks Lodge 7 president Sam Morrison.
As for folks looking for support from the service organization, well, they just have to ask.
“We’re always funding worthy causes and helping where we can. If people ask and it’s within our mandate and we can afford it, we’ll certainly look into donating funds,” Claffey said. “So, like all the lodges in Saskatchewan, we’re strong in our community; one of our slogans is ‘Community people helping community people’ and that’s what we’re always trying to do.”
