Rochester Elks Lodge to celebrate Flag Day June 14

ROCHESTER - The public is invited to attend the Rochester Elks Flag Day observance at the Lodge Hall on Columbus Avenue.

Flag Day Services are set for June 14 at 7 p.m. with Past Exalted Ruler Peter Ducharme leading this ceremony. Members and Officers from the Rochester Emblem Club #40 will present the Flags during the event. The guest speaker will be Paul Callaghan, Mayor of the City of Rochester. Complimentary light refreshments will be served at the conclusion of the service.

The public is cordially invited to attend this wonderful ceremony. Parents and grandparents are encouraged to attend with their school-age children to learn the history of the American Flag.

Local Elks Lodges throughout the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Panama Canal will celebrate Flag Day on June 14 or on an alternate day approved by the District Deputy. The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is the only fraternal organization to require a formal observance of Flag Day.

In July of 1908, the Elks' Grand Lodge provided for the annual nationwide observance of Flag Day on June 14 of June each year, making it mandatory for each subordinate Lodge in the Order. June 14 was officially established as Flag Day by a proclamation by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916.

Flag Day was not a national observance until 1949 when President Harry Truman, himself an Elks member, was inspired through his Lodge in Independence, Mo., to sign an act of Congress that dedicated June 14 to the symbol of our country.

The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks has made more than $14 billion in donations since it first started 156 years ago.

Last year alone, the Elks donated approximately $499 million in cash, non-cash items, mileage and volunteer hours to make their communities better places to live.

New Hampshire has 13 Elks Lodges with over 8,200 members. There are more than 1,800 Elks Lodges across the country with a total membership over 800,000. Elks' members must be American citizens who are at least 21 years of age and must believe in God.

To learn more about the Elks, visit www.elks.org