Barre Elks Lodge worked with The Dictionary Project, a non profit organization that provides dictionaries and thesauruses to third and fourth grade students. Barre Elks Lodge was able to participate and purchase the books with assistance from an Elks National Foundation Gratitude Grant.

Members of Barre Elks Lodge visited six area elementary schools and donated over fifty dictionaries to third grade students and two hundred thesauruses to fourth grade students.  The reference books are the a gift for each student to keep and use throughout their school careers.

In addition to the dictionaries and thesauruses, students were also given Drug awareness coloring books, bookmarks and comic books as part of the Elks National Drug Awareness program.  The Elks National Drug Awareness Program is the largest volunteer drug awareness program in the United States.  Elks are committed to eliminating the use and abuse of illegal drugs by all members of society and believe that in order to ensure a bright future for our country, it is essential that our children be raised in a drug-free environment.

Central Vermont Catholic School fourth grade students.

Barre Town Elementary School fourth grade students.

Orange Center School third grade students.

Orange Center School fourth grade students.

For the past nine years, Springfield Elks Lodge #1560 has been giving all third graders in Springfield’s elementary schools the Elks Dictionary.   Michael Tennis, Youth Chairman for the Elks presented (91) dictionaries to Union Street School recently.   Over the nine year period they have given out 826 dictionaries.