help AND increase our Don’t just be a member …….
BE AN ELK!
By
Wayne Whitmore, Leading Knight
As I’m writing this, work is progressing on flattening the lodge floor. In case you’ve been in a coma or living under a rock somewhere, our lodge room floor was heaving horribly and when walking across it one felt like one needed a surfboard to ride the waves. This has truly been a major undertaking! As soon as the carpets were lifted off, the true nature and scope of the needed repairs became evident. The floor was originally poured straight on top of dirt, only 2-3 inches thick, with no moisture barrier and no rebar reinforcement. Further, the soil under our building is VERY alkaline and causes an effervescence which makes the floor buckle and heave. Long story short, the ONLY true fix for the floor would have been to completely remove the old concrete, dig some of the dirt out, install a moisture barrier and rebar, and repour the entire floor. That undertaking would have cost our lodge several $100K!!! As it is, our floor, when finished, will be significantly flatter and should last for a few years. Further, as sections begin heaving again, we should be able to effect minor repairs as needed. Finally, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to Dona Hoesly and Gene Winn for stepping up and helping me get the lodge opened for the workers everyday and helping to keep the lounge open during this period!
OK, OK….I know that the title of this piece had little to do with the above paragraph about the floor, but the time has come for our members to STEP UP!!! How can you step up? Well, just participating in your lodge would be a big step. COME TO MEETINGS!….COME TO EVENTS!…..VOLUNTEER!! We have over 150 members in this lodge, yet less than 20 members participate in any meaningful way.
So, the floor is nearly fixed and we need to continue to improve our lodge. Please send me emails about what YOU think we should tackle next. Paint the building, paint the fence, hold lodge cleaning days, repair ?WHAT?.
If I’m being honest with you, if we don’t get more volunteer membership, it’s difficult to imagine the future of our lodge! I challenge each of you to devote AT LEAST 2-3 hours each month to volunteering! Also, I challenge each of you to contact your friends/acquaintances and ask them to consider becoming an Elk!
So, are you ready to BE AN ELK and not just a member? Send me an email at whitmore2353@gmail.com with your suggestions and questions.
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