by Maryann Dernlan, 2011 Legacy Scholar and former ENF staff member As a member of Metuchen, N.J., Lodge No. 1914, a 2011 Legacy Scholar, and a former Elks National Foundation staff member, I thought all of my new Elkdom experiences were in the books. From volunteering with my parents at their Elks Lodges while growing up, to running Elks Scholar Service Trips and attending National Conventions, I have a plethora of Elks experiences. But COVID-19 brought a new opportunity to reconnect with Elkdom. My mom, who has been the Scholarship Coordinator at the Metuchen Lodge for many years, asked me if I’d like to join the Scholarship Committee this year. In a “normal,” non-COVID time, this probably wouldn’t have seemed like an option—typically, she would try to get those who attend meetings in person and volunteer in person to join the committee. She has struggled to get new volunteers in recent years and has done the judging on her own. However, with the new-and-improved online jud
by Grace Roebuck, Elks Scholar Fellow Grace at the 2016 MVS Leadership Weekend You know, when I first heard about the Elks Lodge, I just thought it was a restaurant in my town with a really bopping bingo night. Little did I know, bingo nights like those would soon be the reason I attended the college of my dreams debt-free and recently accepted a dream job, even after graduating into a pandemic-ravaged world. While I’ve enjoyed every experience I’ve had with my Elks Family, I have to say my love for the Elks really boils down to the scholars I’ve met and connected with throughout the years. In my new role as the Elks Scholar Fellow, I’m tasked with figuring out how to adapt to our new virtual world, which is sadly devoid of scholar service trips. In their place, thanks to the help of our scholars and the ENF, I’ve started to organize events for our Elks scholars to convene and have fun together. In my favorite event so far, our Spooky Scholar Halloween Party, we had scholars j