ENF Programs
The mission of the Elks National Foundation is to help Elks build stronger communities. We fulfill this pledge by investing in communities where Elks live and work. We provide tomorrow’s leaders, our youth, with lifelong skills; honor the Elks’ pledge to never forget our veterans; help the state Elks associations accomplish their charitable objectives and fund projects that improve the quality of life in local Elks communities.
At its February meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the Elks National Foundation Board of Trustees approved appropriations and distributions for the 2017 fiscal year totaling a record $29.5 million.
Community Investments Program$9.81 million
State Elks Association Grants$9.10 million
Scholarship Programs$4.31 million
Elks National Veterans Service Program$1.46 million
Elks Hoop Shoot Free Throw Contest$952,760
Elks Drug Awareness Program$729,330
This is how Plymouth-Ann Arbor has used the grants received by your donations.
Promise Grant:
· Sponsored a wrestling tournament and the Plymouth-Ann Arbor Lodge will receive naming rights.
· Hosted their annual Pumpkin Patch at Cooke School in Northville. They setup 9 portable houses in the school gym to allow 225 of our most special needs children to “Trick or Treat”. Twelve volunteers participated and handed out over $700 of candy.
Freedom Grant:
· Hosted a steak luncheon in November for 125 hospitalized, homeless, and former POW Veterans.
· The lodge will host a second luncheon in April and expect at least 125 of our Veterans will be in attendance.
· Remaining funds will be applied to the annual Veteran’s Christmas events.
Gratitude Grant:
· The Lodge continues to use the Gratitude Grant to support the Veteran’s Christmas events that were started in 1978. Lodge volunteers have wrapped 880 gifts of 15 items each and will distribute them before Christmas.
Elks National Foundation Website Click Here
Grants and Appropriations
At its February meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the Elks National Foundation Board of Trustees approved appropriations and distributions for the 2016-17 fiscal year totaling $29.52 million.
Want more? Click here to listen to Episode 22 of Midday with the ENF.
Program-Related Grants and Appropriations
Local Philanthropy
Appropriated $9.8 million to invest directly in Lodge communities. Community Investment Program grant projects improve the areas where Elks work and live. The Impact Grant pool will increase by $100,000, totaling $600,000 available for large-scale grants. Promise Grants are $2,500 each, continuing last year’s increase, and Lodges with 15 percent of their members donating to the ENF in 2015-16 will be eligible for a $500 bonus on the Gratitude Grant when the GER’s per-member-giving goal is met in 2016-17.
Granted $9.1 million to the state Elks associations through State Charities Grants, Special Project Grants and Bonus Grants, which help fund each state’s major charitable projects.
College Scholarships
Today’s Elks scholars have the potential of becoming tomorrow’s Elks. Receiving an ENF scholarship is a first step, but we need to engage Elks scholars as part of the Elks family by including them in Lodge activities and volunteer projects. This year, up to 20 scholars will serve on each of the three Elks Scholar Service Trips funded by the ENF. Elks scholars served in Manistique, Mich., in Oakland, Calif., and Washington, DC in 2015-16. We have witnessed Elks scholars and Elks connecting and forging bonds on these trips. The Elks scholars serve the host community in the name of Elks.
Designated $2.75 million to fund the Most Valuable Student scholarship program, which includes 500 four-year scholarships. The contest features 20 top awards—10 for males, 10 for females—of at least $20,000. These 20 finalists will attend the MVS Leadership Weekend in Chicago, where they will interview for the $30,000, $40,000 and $50,000 MVS scholarships.
Designated $1.13 million for the Legacy Awards scholarship program. This includes 250 four-year, $4,000 scholarships for children and grandchildren of Elks.
Reserved $322,240 for the Emergency Educational Grants program. Emergency Educational Grants are one-year educational grants to the children of deceased or totally disabled Elks.
Youth Activities
Granted $952,760 to fund the Hoop Shoot, helping young people develop grit, the ability to persevere when the odds are stacked against them.
Appropriated $739,330 to completely fund the Elks Drug Awareness Program, which promotes constructive and cooperative solutions to youth substance abuse through education.
Veterans Service and Remembrance
Granted $1.46 million to the Order’s Veterans Service Program, which provides aid and comfort for America’s veterans in need.
- Elks Veterans Memorial Maintenance
Granted $705,900 to maintain the Elks Veterans Memorial in Chicago.
Miscellaneous Grants
- Reserved $378,000 for miscellaneous grants, including the Gunther & Lee Weigel Medical School Scholarship.
Supporting Services
- Fundamental Appropriations
Appropriated $2.18 million to fund the Foundation’s administrative and fundraising expenses. At 7.4 percent, our fundamental expenses are far below the Better Business Bureau’s standard for charities of no more than 35 percent of total spending.
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