Buckeye, AZ 2686

The Buckeye Elks Lodge #2686 was pleased to host Mr. Al Kayal and his lovely wife Brenda to our Smoked Meats Dinner on November 23, 2019. Mr. Kayal is the Arizona Elks Association Vice President, West District. We discussed the AEA state programs, shared some good information and in general had a great visit! I'm sure all will agree (those lucky enough to try it) that the Smoked Meats Dinner was above and beyond delicious!! Those in the picture are: Jay Broadbent, Deanne Forney, Rosie Hendricks, Tedy Burton, Al & Brenda Kayal, Wanell Costello, Ronni Thompson, Bob Costello and Steve Staudinger.

Along with the Daughters of the American Revolution, we had the honor of hosting Sgt. George Cross at our Lodge on Saturday, November 9, 2019 after the Buckeye Veterans Day Parade. Sgt. Cross is a US Army WWII Paratrooper, is almost 95 years young, and lives an active life in Sun City Festival in Buckeye. What a privilege to meet such a heroic gentleman! Words cannot express our gratitude to the Veterans and those still currently serving...Happy Veterans Day to you all!!!

On August 28, 2019, Exalted Ruler Tedy Burton presented a $1,500 donation to the Buckeye Valley Daughters of the American Revolution! This was made possible through an Elks National Foundation grant. We appreciate the work DAR does for our community! Pictured is Tedy with Linda Davis (left) and Jackie DeMare (right), both long time members of DAR.

The Lodge enjoyed being able to cook breakfast on Friday, November 8, 2019 at Liberty School for their military men/women parents and their students. Thank you Hickmans Family Farms for donating the eggs. Thank you Jay Broadbent, Eric Cooke, and Steve Staudinger for volunteering your time to cook. And mostly importantly, thank you to our Veterans and those currently serving!

Thanks to the generosity of our Lodge Members and the Arizona Elks Major Projects, we were able to make a wonderful donation to Natalie's House! Pictured are Lodge Officers Eric Cooke, Jay Broadbent, Tedy Burton, and Steve Staudinger with Janet Olson of Natalie's House. Natalie's House is a group home for girls ages 6 to 16 who need help with all facets of life. Currently, they have girls there between ages 8 and 15. Their stays are approximately one year before moving on to a family member or a foster home. We also sent Janet off with a box of toiletries, toys and socks donated by PER Brian McAchran. Picture taken November 2019.