Blackwell Elks Lodge donates $2,000 to Blackwell Library

It was an average Monday at the Blackwell Public Library until Debra North, Secretary for The Elks Lodge Post 1347 came through the double doors with something more surprising than a book to return: a check for $2,000.

Blackwell’s Elks Lodge gifted the library the check from their Spotlight Grant to fund an after-school snack program for school-age children in the community.

The library offers a summer meal program, seasonally, provided by the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma which only runs between school semesters. The funding from the Elks Lodge will help the library to continue providing food throughout the school year as well.

“We are so thankful to have The Elks Lodge seek us out for this grant,” Blackwell Public Library’s Director of Operations Talyn Spence said Monday.

“I cannot thank them enough for their generosity and for the love they have for their community. Our summer meal program feeds hundreds through the months where the school is out, and thanks to The Elks Lodge we can now provide snacks throughout the school year. Our library serves Blackwell, and it is Blackwell that helps us in return,” said Spence.

The library’s after-school snack program is expected to begin towards the end of August.

The summer meal program ends on August 5.

Being awarded The Elks Lodge’s Spotlight Grant is the kind of feel-good closing to an exciting summer chapter of the library’s 100-year-long story.

Through the summer the library offered their meal program, summer reading program, and various events including hosting a movie night in conjunction with Blackwell Tourism last week.

Along with those events, the library held a book sale of surplus books to kick off the summer. They recently donated over 300 of the unsold books to the Goodwill in Wichita, Kansas, coordinated by the New Leaf rehabilitation center to be distributed across Goodwill stores in the region.

The library, also, have just completely re-organized their “Oklahoma Room”, a conference room with Indigenous art, historical books, archives, and vintage novels that are on display.

Throughout the year, the Elks Lodge hosts golf tournaments, cornhole tournaments and dinners. The proceeds from these events go toward roughly $2,500 in college scholarships that are awarded to Blackwell High School graduates.

The Elks also provides several Blackwell students with $500 in scholarships to Northern Oklahoma College every year, as well as holding fundraisers to pay for Christmas gifts for a number of families in town.

The Elks also works with Blackwell’s Veterans of Foreign Wars donates to their bike giveaway.

Those who wish donate to the Lodge can do so by calling the Lodge at 580-670-1303 or by emailing a Lodge member at elks1347@gmail.com.

Members of the Lodge meet the first Tuesday of each month at 1951 N. 9th St. Those who wish to apply to be a member may do so by picking up an application.