Skip to main content

What’s the weather got to do with it—the 2017 version.



by Christine Robinson
Senior Associate, Communications

This past week, the ENF staff prepared for two big events—MVS Leadership Weekend and Hoop Shoot National Finals—all while closing the 2016-17 fiscal year. It’s a team effort, which begins at the local Lodge level and continues through district, state and National. We couldn’t do what we do in Chicago without every one of you. Thank you. 

So, the weather. What’s that got to do with it? 

Leadership Weekend takes months of planning and hard toil.  We want to make it the best weekend ever. Of course, we couldn’t do any of this without the Elks scholars—the most important part of the best weekend ever.  

And as you may know, Midwestern weather can be unpredictable. It changes at the drop of a scholarship cap. We can’t control the weather. If we could, there wouldn’t be any seasons. It would be our favorite one year-round. (For me, that’d be late summer.) 

So you’re still wondering, what in the world does the weather have to do with this weekend?
Well, take a look at my favorite meteorologists’ forecast for the weekend.


That! ^ 
 
The Midwest was bracing for a wintry mix. And wintry storm mixes often come with rain, snow, wind and canceled flights. 

It would be very inconvenient to host the best weekend ever without any Elks scholars.
In case you didn’t read the March issue of Pulse, or haven’t been on Facebook lately, I’ll tell you here, it’s been very busy. So this past week, when the Top 20 MVS scholars were preparing for the best weekend ever—ENF staff we’re paying close attention to the weather and possible flight cancellations. 

Wednesday, it rained for the entire day and Tom Skilling was predicting a breezy Thursday. Tom’s forecast was right, but the Elks scholars were determined to be at the 2017 Leadership Weekend. After all, they had been preparing for this moment for their whole lives. 


My favorite meteorologist, Tom Skilling,
 meets one of his biggest fans in May 2016.
Photo credit: Tom Skilling's biggest fan (a.k.a me)
On Thursday, as ENF staff kept their eyes to the skies, the storm system breezed through Chicago, and the wintry mix stayed away. Phewwwww. 

The forecast shifted and ENF staff headed to the airports to greet the top 20 because April Showers bring Elks scholars. 

Now you know what the weather’s got to do with it. 

For more weather themed blog post, check out the 2016 Version of Whats the Weather Got to do with it. 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Labels

Show more

Popular posts from this blog

Seizing Every Opportunity

Reflections from the SAB President By Kat Nakamura 2019 MVS Scholar Hi, Elks Family! I’m Kat Nakamura, a 2019 MVS Scholar currently serving as the president of the Scholar Advisory Board. My time with the Elks has been a transformative experience, not only providing me with financial support for my education but opening the door to a nurturing community of like-minded individuals and remarkable opportunities. My journey began when I applied for the Elks Most Valuable Student scholarship, and little did I know it was just the beginning of a life-changing adventure. Months later, my mom encouraged me to apply to join the Scholar Advisory Board. Initially hesitant, I thought there was no chance of being accepted. Little did I realize that this decision would lead me to one of my most cherished experiences throughout college. The Scholar Advisory Board are the representatives that advise the ENF on scholar relations. Apart from being on the board, members attend the Elks National Conve
Post a Comment
Read more

A Boatload of Scholars, a Busload of Clothes

By: Aditi V. Patel,  2019 Most Valuable Student scholar Last week, I had the pleasure of serving alongside 20 other amazing Elks scholars as a part of the Tampa Elks Scholar Service Trip. I did my research before the trip and found that Hurricane Ian had displaced more than 40,000 Floridians in September 2022—I wanted to do something to help! After landing in Tampa, we got right to work by sorting a busload (literally) of clothing that Tampa, Fla., Lodge No. 708 collected from the community for Greater Pine Island. We organized each item of clothing by size, made sure each item was in good condition, and placed them into bags. Whenever there weren’t clothes at my table, I would shift to another station to help others, and I saw other scholars doing the same. It was amazing to see everyone laboriously working for hours without any complaints, learning names and fun facts as we went. We had dinner at the Tampa Elks Lodge, which is where I had my first genuine conversations with the s
3 comments
Read more

Finding a Place in the #ElksFamily

by Aleah Hahn, Most Valuable Student Scholar Aleah Hahn received a second place Most Valuable Student scholarship in 2018. She graduated from Michigan State University in 2021 with degrees in Biosystem Engineering and German. She is pursuing her master’s degree in Marine Resource Management at Oregon State. In her free time, she likes to cycle, forage and hike. Over my spring break I was able to partake in the 2022 Spring Elks Scholar Service Trip in Chicago! In 2018, I attended the 150 for 150 Service Trip in San Antonio, where we celebrated the Elks 150th anniversary through service. Both were amazing experiences to serve in the name of the Elks. They were alike but also different in many ways.  In San Antonio, I connected with Elks state leadership from my home state of Michigan since the trip was at the Elks National Convention!  I served with 149 other scholars and met many of them. It was a great opportunity to connect with other scholars. The majority of our service was at Haven
1 comment
Read more