MA Elks Association Informational
Special Update
Massachusetts Elks
Association
Email Informational Special Update - 3-24-10
Today is: Agriculture Day in the
United States
On This Day
in 1920 - The first U.S. coast guard air station is established
(Morehead City North Carolina)
Passing of Marjorie E. Mattei, Widow of MA
Elks Past State President Alfred Mattei
I have the sad duty to report that
Marjorie
Emma (Gurney) Mattei of Worcester died Saturday, March 20, 2010 in the
Notre Dame Long Term Care Center. She was the widow of Alfred J. Mattei
PGELK and Past State President of the Massachusetts Elks Association, who
passed away in 1985.
She leaves a daughter, Andrea, of Morristown, N.J. and Jupiter, Florida; a
sister, Barbara L. Ryan of Quincy; a brother and sister-in-law, Harold A.
Gurney and his wife Patricia of Auburn, two beloved cousins, Joan Rubley
Aurelli of Wayland and C. Ronald Rubley and his wife, Carol of Vassar,
Pennsylvania, many nieces and nephews, cousins, friends, neighbors, and
classmates. A sister, Mary T. Gurney, predeceased her.
Marjorie's family extends their deep appreciation to the staff of the West
Wing at Notre Dame Long Term Care Center and the UMass Memorial Hospice
Program for extraordinary care and compassion during Marjorie's final
illness.
There is a calling hour today, March 24, 2010 from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM at
the Athy Memorial Home, 111 Lancaster St., Worcester. The funeral Mass
will follow at 4 p.m. in the Notre Dame du Lac Chapel, 555 Plantation St.,
Worcester. Burial in St. John's Cemetery will be private.
Donations may be made in Marjorie's memory to the Almara Fellowship Fund,
Development Office, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA 01705 or the
Tower Hill Botanical Garden, 11 French Drive, Boylston, MA 01505.
Elks Launch Nationwide “UR Choice
UR Voice” Drug-Prevention Campaign
Chicago, Ill.—
The
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks has unveiled its new “UR Choice UR
Voice” drug-prevention campaign, a multimedia platform featuring former Grey’s
Anatomy star Isaiah Washington, nationally renowned motivational speaker Milton
Creagh, and Grammy Award winning producer Isaiah “Izzy” Avalia.
The core of the campaign is the “UR Choice, UR Voice” music video, which uses
mainstream music to expose youth to a different, more realistic view of the
dangers that illicit drugs present. By using a form of media familiar to youth,
this new campaign is at the forefront of drug prevention methods.
In addition to the music video, the multimedia platform includes an accompanying
background documentary, a pre- and post-test for students, and a discussion
guide for teachers.
The tests feature multiple-choice questions regarding drug usage, and criminal
activity resulting from substance abuse including assaults against women, gang
activity and murder. One question asks, “How do most teen drug users make their
first contact with illegal drugs?” The answer: “Through their friends.”
For many students, the information is new. A student from Jamestown, Missouri,
said, “I had no idea how much alcohol [and drugs] has affected the lives of the
people around me.”
The accompanying documentary introduces another facet to the campaign by
providing interviews with current and recovering drug users, as well as with
individuals indirectly impacted by drug use. A young girl, whose life was
negatively affected by her father’s drug abuse, is featured in the documentary.
Viewers also are shown the background behind the production of the music video.
Already, this multimedia platform has been test-run at high schools across the
United States, and success has been immediate. “Well over a thousand students
and more than 50 faculty members departed the auditorium awestruck,” said
Raymond F. Ross, the former president of Colorado State Elks Association.
“Students as young as 13 years old stood up and freely admitted before their
peers and teachers that they were involved with illicit drugs and alcohol.”
Since the early 1980s, the Elks National Drug Awareness Program has been
recognized as the nation’s largest volunteer-based drug prevention program.
Aside from the “UR Choice, UR Voice” campaign, the Elks Drug Awareness Program
is renowned for its Marvel Comic Book,
Hard Choices
and its involvement in the national Red Ribbon Week in October where students
pledge to be drug free.
With the “UR Choice UR Voice” campaign, the Elks Drug Awareness Program aims to
present its materials at schools and youth community groups in partnership with
local Elks Lodges across the nation.
Follow the UR Choice
UR Voice Campaign at
www.elks.org/dap
or become a fan on Facebook by searching for “UR Choice UR Voice.”
In 2009-10, the Elks
National Foundation is the charitable arm of the B.P.O.E and fully funds the
Drug Awareness Program. This year, the ENF allocated $748,200 to promote the
Elks National Drug Awareness Program. For more information on the Drug Awareness
Program, visit
www.elks.org/dap.
Contact:
Elks National Foundation
Anne Reardon, Communications Specialist
2750 N. Lakeview Ave., Chicago, IL 60614-2256,
773/755.4864,
anner@elks.org
For a copy of this press release online, visit
www.elks.org/editors/default.cfm.
Helping Elks Build Stronger Communities
They Shoot, They Score!
Gorham, ME to Host Elks "Hoop Shoot" Free Throw New
England Regional Championship Saturday, March 27th, at the
University of Maine, 37 College Ave., Gorham, ME, 9:00 A.M.
On March 27th,
36-young free-throw shooters hailing from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,
New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont will descend on Gorham, Maine to
display their impressive skills as they compete in the regional championship
of the Elks "Hoop Shoot" National Free Throw Contest. These net-stuffing boys
and girls, who already have local, District, and State championships in hand,
face their next challenge here in Gorham.
With free-throw
percentages that would make many in the NBA weep with envy, these talented
youngsters have already proven themselves to be the standouts in a competition
that started last Fall with more than 3-million participants, ages 8 to 13.
Now as the top free-throw shooters from 6-states gather at the University of
Maine, 37 College Ave., Gorham, ME at 9:00 AM, they will continue to make news
as they take all their hard work, talent, and concentration to the line. At
stake is a chance to advance to the national finals, where just
72-participants will compete April 22-25 at the birthplace of basketball,
Springfield, Massachusetts.
Now in its 38th
year, the Elks "Hoop Shoot" National Free Throw Contest, sponsored by
Elks-USA, has grown into the largest co-educational sports program in the
country, allowing boys and girls to compete separately in three age-groups,
8-9, 10-11, and 12-13. Each contest consists of 25 free throws --10 in round
one, 15 in round two -- with ties being resolved in 5-shot shoot-offs. The
6-New England regional winners from the competition in Gorham will have a
chance to stake their claim to one of six coveted spots on the Elks "Hoop
Shoot" plaque in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame alongside past
Elks “Hoop Shoot” champs who have become Olympic champions and sports
celebrities.
The Elks "Hoop
Shoot" National Free Throw Contest is entirely funded by the Elks National
Foundation, the charitable arm of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
Last year, the Foundation disbursed more than $13-million in support of youth
programs, Veterans’ services, drug awareness education programs, college
scholarships, and aid to people with disabilities. Elks-USA is a patriotic
and philanthropic fraternal organization with nearly 1-million members in
more than 2,100 communities.
Nice Article on the Elks and President Harding
Just click on the link below: