EVERETT — Whenever work takes truck driver Bob Walsh out of town, he knows he’ll find a hot meal and a friendly smile at any Elks lodge.
A member of the Everett Elks, Walsh joined hundreds of Elks from all over the state on Saturday afternoon to celebrate the new home of Lodge No. 479.
The Everett Elks moved in July into the new, smaller building on Hoyt Avenue, just across the street from where the old lodge used to be. The old building has since been replaced by a condo project.
Even though the Elks are strong in spirit, steady decline in membership has taken a toll on lodges everywhere, said Liz deLeuze, an exalted ruler of the Oak Harbor lodge.
“With the economy the way it is, everything has slowed down, and the Elks are not an exception,” she said. “Our older members are dying. We need to get our membership back up.”
The Everett Elks go back to 1899, when the lodge was started by officers of the Port Townsend lodge.
Blacks were excluded from membership until 1973. Women were allowed to join in 1995.
The first female candidate to Lodge No. 479 was “black balled” — rejected by members dropping black balls into a ballot box.
That candidate was Penny Leander.
She worked hard for her Elk membership and later became an exalter ruler.
“Men weren’t accepting of women in the lodge then,” Leander said. “But women have since made a great contribution to our order.”
She decided to join the order because its values fit so well with her commitment to charitable work.
The Elks are famous for their generous programs for military service members, children, high school students and more.
The Elks National Foundation each year gives more than $3.6 million in college scholarships to graduating seniors.
“The Elks will never, ever die,” deLeuze said.
Some of the Elks’ children and grandchildren are joining the order or waiting eagerly till they can be initiated at 21, Walsh said. The youngest member of the Everett Lodge is only 21.
After the ceremony on Saturday, guests from other lodges were looking around the new building. Many recognized chandeliers and other memorabilia from the old lodge.
It feels a bit nostalgic, but the move is for the better, Walsh said. The lodge currently has fewer than 800 members, and the two-story space is big enough to accommodate everyone.
The rest of the building is condominiums, currently for sale.
Frank Garland, 87, past national leader of the Elks, came up to the ceremony from his home in Centralia. An Elk of 60 years, Garland called the order his inspiration.
“We have a reputation nationwide of being partiers and drinkers, but we do more for the community than anyone else,” he said.
Katya Yefimova: 425-339-3452, kyefimova@heraldnet.com.
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