(Seguin) – An organization that looks to be the oldest running charity group in Seguin is celebrating 110 years. The Seguin Elks Lodge 1229 this week will not only be celebrating its past but also its vision for the future.
The group is inviting the community to celebrate with it during its anniversary event this Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. at the lodge located at 1331 C.H. Matthies Jr. Drive.
Exalted Ruler John Seiler says the organization has a deep-rooted history in giving and making the lives of others better.
“We were founded in 1867 by a group of actors in New York City. At that time, they wanted some place that they could go and socialize on Sunday and in 1868, one of the members had passed away and the others had decided that ‘we have to do something to help his family’ because we can’t’ just let them out there on their own. So, in 1868, we became known as the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and ever since then, that’s what started all of our charity work,” said Seiler.
He says within that 153 years of charity, Seguin’s very own chapter was created and has also been non-stop.
“This is going to be our 110th anniversary. We received our charter on July 12, 1911, and just trying to plug along ever since then. We have had a lot of help from the community. We’ve given a lot to the community, and we want to stay there for them,” said Seiler.
Seiler says here in Seguin, many organizations have benefited from the years of membership and fundraising by the local Elks.
“We are a fraternal charitable organization. We are a 501c8 and our main purpose is for veterans and kids — from scholarships to helping them with prosthetics if they need it and medical equipment which can even include computers or what have you if they need it. Locally, we give like to the women’s shelter, the Christian Cupboard, the children’s advocacy center, Habitat for Humanity and just everybody we can think of. Recently, we gave to the Gardens of the Children and that’s what we have been doing for 110 years,” said Seiler.
Seiler says together, the 58 chapters in the state of Texas have contributed to causes on the national front as well as those statewide.
“For this particular lodge, since 1911, we have given back to the community $3.7 million in donations. That’s number one for this lodge. As I said, we give to various organizations. The Elks, overall, just millions of dollars a year that are given out. When we contribute to national programs — for every dollar we send in, we’ll get back locally, two to three dollars. We have our various programs. The lodge has what we call our Sweetheart, and her responsibility is for raising funds for over here in Palmetto State Park (in Gonzales County). We have a summer camp for kids with special needs. Starting in June, we take for six weeks, we take 40 special needs kids a week at no cost to their family at all, we take them fishing, boating, hiking, bowling, we teach them some pottery skills and we do that for six weeks during the summer and that’s our Sweetheart Program. That is the state project, so every lodge contributes to it,” said Seiler.
It was in January 2015, when the local Elks Lodge was partially damaged followed a fire. Although it reopened in September of 2018, the local organization has faced various challenges, the most recent being the COVID-19 pandemic which prevented the rental of its facility this past year – an obstacle that has cost the group thousands and thousands of dollars.
Nonetheless, Seiler says the group is slowing returning to normal and is excited to celebrate its 110-year milestone. He says of course, the source of its success remains its membership. He says it is what drives their volunteer efforts.
“First of all, just paying dues helps because part of it stays here and part of it goes into national funds. We have what we call our ENF, Elks National Foundation, and out of that, the Elks is the largest giver of scholarships to kids next to the government. Our Hoop Shoot program comes out of that –that we do locally. We have the veterans’ services which each lodge participates in so if somebody has a particular knack, we probably do have a particular committee for it. Just supporting the lodge — if you come and look at us and you like us, you will want to become a part of us,” said Seiler. “We lost about half of our membership in the fire because they didn’t know if we were going to open back up again or not. So, we are presently at 88 — 88 members, and we are bringing in another half a dozen next month, so we are slowly building our membership back up. Back in the 20s and 30s, this lodge was 550 members.”
Membership dues are $75 a person plus a $25 application fee. Seiler says dues are prorated depending on when in the year a person decides to join. Seiler says membership opportunities will also be shared during Thursday’s free celebration. Those wishing to attend are asked to RSVP by calling 830-303-5844 or email seguinelkslodge1229@gmail.com.