Elks National Foundation Blog

Jerome, Ariz., Lodge No. 1361   Jeans? $13. T-shirt? $7. Gym shoes? $14. Providing clothes for youth in need? Priceless. Using an Elks National Foundation Promise Grant , Jerome, Ariz., Lodge No. 1361 took 26 local students back-to-school shopping. The Lodge partnered with teachers in the community to determine which students would most benefit from new school clothes, and then they were off to the store! Elks shopped with the students to buy what they needed—from socks to dresses. “The students ranged from 4-years-old to 14-years-old,” says Community Investments Program Project Manager Janet Leuer. “They were all very excited to have new clothes to start school.” Interested in serving local youth in need? Don’t wait to apply for a Promise Grant! These $2,000 grants are going quickly—fewer than half are still available! Click here for full Promise Grant details, including access to the online application. Elks are committed to America’s future. To build the character...

Christine Robinson Donor Services Assistant How long have you worked at the ENF? I’ve worked at the ENF for four months. What projects are you/your department working on right now? Donor Services is busy processing donations. I’m running the individual cumulative recognition process this week. Every donor who has met a new level of giving will be receiving their recognition—either a pin or a pin and certificate—in the mail within the next two weeks.  What’s your favorite part of working at the ENF? I love the chances I get to interact with Elks—helping donors who may need a replacement pin, assisting ENF Fundraising Chairs who have questions about how to submit names with remittances, and seeing just how generous the Elks are. I started in March, and was blown away by the generosity of the Elks. I thoroughly enjoy sending out the monthly recognition. Describe your average day at the ENF. My day always starts with a cup of coffee. Then it depends on the day. If it ...

Xavier Shiu    2014 Legacy Awards Recipient Case Western Reserve University—Biomedical Engineering Major Sponsored by Sioux City, Iowa, Lodge No. 112 Empowering others to believe in themselves is a goal of Xavier Shiu. He achieved this by incorporating his love of science into community service. An integral part of the University of Nebraska Medical Center Youth Advisory Board, Xavier helps plan science lectures and summer activities for hundreds of under-served students, promoting an interest in health and science careers. Xavier also developed and coordinated an outdoor exercise program for neighborhood children, to keep them active by making exercise fun and helping them build friendships. “They never wanted to go in for the evening,” he remembers. Xavier is looking forward to his studies and plans to use his education to help advance the field of mechanical medical devices, such as surgical robots to help improve the impact of medicine. “Being an Elks s...

Victoria Crynes 2014 Most Valuable Student Scholar Arizona State University—Global Politics with Pre-Law Major Sponsored by Sapulpa, Okla., Lodge No. 1118 Elks scholars know the importance of helping their local communities. They also know it’s important to be responsible global citizens. For Victoria Crynes, both come naturally. In high school, Victoria sent care packages to soldiers stationed overseas, spent many hours tutoring students, and developed educational curriculum on college readiness for at-risk youth. These college-prep workshops aimed to minimize the student dropout rate and earned Victoria a Girl Scout Gold Award. In addition to her community service, Victoria cultivated an interest in politics and other cultures by hosting foreign exchange students, spending time on political campaigns, and shadowing judges and corporate attorneys to learn more about the legal profession. She plans to combine these interests in a future career as an international lawyer...

If you could double your gift to the ENF without personally giving twice as much, would you do it?  With more than 19,000 companies offering a matching gift program , there’s a good chance you could double the impact of your donation by requesting a matching gift through your employer. To learn more about matching gifts, we asked Donor Services Associate Jon Flaherty to answer some frequently asked questions about company-sponsored matching gift programs.  Here’s what he had to say. Q. What is a matching gift?     A.  It’s when an employer will match a donation dollar-for-dollar to an organization. Q. What is a volunteer grant?     A. It’s when a company will match volunteer hours with a check to the ENF. When employees volunteer at the Lodge, they record their hours volunteered and turn them into their employer. Then, their company matches the time volunteered by writing a check to the ENF. Q. How do I know if my employer does matching g...

Rohit Gupta 2014 Most Valuable Student Scholar Rice University—Biochemistry and Cell Biology Major Sponsored by Englewood, Colo., Lodge No. 2122 Mentor. Advocate. Leader. These words only begin to describe Rohit Gupta’s high school involvement. As a freshman, he started a nonprofit tutoring program to provide free educational services to underserved youth in his community. In the last four years, he has taught hundreds of students from pre-school to college, helping them build a foundation in math, reading and writing. In addition to providing face-to-face educational support, he also developed educational apps. Downloaded by over 20,000 people worldwide, the free apps provide personal assistance and additional guidance to students. “I am focused on making students positive and independent self-learners,” says Rohit. Besides advancing educational resources for countless learners, Rohit has found time to pursue his interest in medicine, assisting hospital staff and advoc...