National Veterans Service Commission
GL Newsletter, Dec. 2009 Veterans Message: Helping Veterans also means filing report
by Paul D. Helsel, PGERCommission Member
Congratulations to all Elks who, through their Lodges and State Associations, give so very much in time, money and other forms of service for our nation’s heroes – our Veterans and those currently serving in the military.
As I witnessed this past year, the Members of our great Order at all levels continue to fulfill our 63-year pledge, “So long as there are Veterans, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks will never forget them,” in a most exemplary manner. I personally saw, firsthand, in State after State and Lodge after Lodge, dedicated Elks working diligently to provide for the support, comfort and well being of Veterans and Military Personnel and their families in the communities, as well as in locations far away from home. While we should always strive to do more, our Programs, through the dedicated efforts of Elks Members all across this country, are most definitely reaching those we have pledged to serve. We can all be very proud of our efforts and I commend each and every Elk, Lodge and State Association for their dedication to these programs of service for Veterans, Military Personnel and their families.
While our great Order of Elks leads our nation in service to our Veterans and Military Personnel we don’t always complete our work with the proper documentation of our efforts and accomplishments. Every Lodge NVSC Chairperson must record the efforts of their Lodge on a monthly basis so that they can file a complete and accurate Veterans Remembrance Report by January 15, 2010, and then the State NVSC Chairperson will be able to file the Association report proudly and hopefully be able to say that the state had 100 percent participation. We know you do the work, so please take the time to record your efforts and get credit for helping those who have and are so gallantly protecting our freedoms.
Last year’s report showed we had 196,970 Elks and non-Elks who participated, helping 1,400,889 Veterans over 997,548 hours with 4,880,118 miles traveled for a total, by government standards, of $30,625,738.00 donated. These are commendable statistics and while they continue to grow, they do not tell the whole story. Not all Lodges and State Associations filed their reports this past year. Just imagine what the numbers would be if we counted everything we do, if every Lodge and State Association reported! I know we can improve these numbers with everyone’s help in reporting everything we do.
Working together we can make this an even better year for our Veterans, Military Personnel, and for our Order. I urge each and every Exalted Ruler to ensure that their Lodge NVSC Chairperson files this report and that every State President ensures that their State NVSC Chairperson files the State Association report. If you need the forms contact your District Deputy or the NVSC Office in Chicago at (773) 755-4736.
Please continue helping our Veterans, Military Personnel and their families and then filing the reports so that this year we can say we have 100 percent Lodge and State Association participation in the “Veterans Remembrance Report,” showing as always, that “Care - Share!”
