Elks Magazine Online

Archive Issue: November 2001

Features

10

The Desert Oasis: Palm Springs

If snowcapped mountains, sunny days, and world-class golf courses sound appealing to you, then this beautiful desert community certainly deserves a visit. Patricia Ann McNair

26

The Original Purple Heart

Instituted to honor bravery and courage "above and beyond the call of duty," the Badge of Military Merit was awarded to only three individuals from the Revolutionary War. To this day their heroic exploits remain an inspiration to us all. James M. Powles

30

The Elks National Veterans Service Commission's Veterans Leather Program

For more than 50 years the ENVSC's Veterans Leather Program has provided a meaningful therapeutic outlet for hospitalized veterans across the nation. Learn how your Lodge can help contribute to the program and about the exciting new developments coming in the months ahead. Staff Report

33

The Great Diamond Hoax of 1872

One spring day a pair of dusty prospectors named John Slack and Phil Arnold walked into the Bank of California to deposit a sack full of gems. Less than a year later, the two walked off with more than a half million dollars of the bank's money in one of the most famous swindles ever perpetrated. Richard Bauman

Departments

4

Message form the GER: A Grieving Fraternity, Proudly Caring and Sharing

6

It's Your Business: Online Businesses: Keeping the Faith

8

Healthline: Settling Down for a Long Winter's Sleep

16

Veterans: Elks National Veterans Service Commission

19

Elks National Foundation: Joy of Giving

20

News of the Lodges: Elks Care--Elks Share

28

Travels of the GER: On Tour with Arthur Mayer Jr.

37

Conventions: News of the State Associations