|
Winsted Elks Youth Activities
Winsted Elks Lodge #844 will soon be celebrating 100 years of service to our local community. We continue our efforts in Winsted, as well as in the surrounding towns, to promote the ideals of Elkdom, which include services to our youth.
The following youth activities are now going on for area youth, from eight years old to high school seniors, including students in Winsted, New Hartford, Barkhamsted, Colebrook, Norfolk and other surrounding towns. All of our youth programs are free to children.
• Basketball Hoop Shoot is for all area children ages 8-13 as of the April 1 (children age 7 may shoot if they will be 8 before April 1; and youth age 13 may not shoot if they turn 14 before April 1). This national Elks event will take place at the Pearson School on Wetmore Ave. in Winsted on Saturday, January 11; student sign-up will be at 9 a.m., with ages 8-9 shooting at 9:30 a.m., followed by ages 10-11 at 10 a.m., with ages 12-13 shooting at 10:30 a.m. Area winners will compete at the district level, followed by state and national levels, if qualified. Trophies will be awarded at the Winsted Elks Youth Banquet in May.
• Americanism Essay Contest for students in grades 5-8 — This year’s theme is "What does freedom mean to me?" Essay length is not to exceed 200 words. Essays must be typed or legibly printed in ink; name, home address, grade and school the student is attending must be included on the essay. Essays will be judged for originality, development of theme (staying focused), mechanics and neatness (proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation). Essays must be submitted for judging to the Winsted Elks by January 30; local lodge winners will be notified and their entries will be sent on to state and/or national level competitions. Awards will be presented at the Winsted Elks Youth Banquet.
• Drug Awareness Poster and Essay Contests are open to all area children in grades 3-8. Children in grades 3-5 must use the Elks poster form, coloring the pre-printed picture to the left and drawing and coloring their own picture in the space provided; this year’s theme is "Growing Up—Drug Free." Posters may be picked up at the Winsted Elks Lodge, at the local library, your school office, or by calling chairman Debbie Angell at 379-5172. The essay contest is open to all students in grades 6-8; this year’s theme is "What can I do to influence my peers to not use any illegal substance?" This hand-written essay must be no longer than 250 words. Judging for both contests will be based on closeness to the theme, neatness and originality. All entries must be returned to the Winsted Elks by February 18. For further instructions, please view the Connecticut Elks website at <ctelks.org> under "poster and essay contests." Local winners will be announced, with those entries being sent on to district, state and national competition. Awards will be given out during the Youth Banquet in May.
• Scholarship Applications are available at all local high school guidance offices. To qualify, you must be a high school senior going on to an accredited college. The form must be completely filled out and returned to the Winsted Elks for local judging. Local, state and national scholarships will be distributed to those who qualify.
For more info on any of these programs, call Debbie Angell, youth activities chairman for Winsted Elks Lodge #844, at 860- 379-5172 (evenings).
|
|
