About Our Lodge

In 1998 Palo Alto Lodge #1471 celebrated 75 years as an integral part of our community. Through hard work and dedication, the Lodge grew from a few hundred 80 years ago to over 3400 in the mid-1980s and we are holding strong at about 1000 members today. As economic times go through periods of growth and retrenchment, so does the Elks and many other social organizations. Society as a whole also goes through changes in lifestyles, priorities, and commitments. For the BPO Elks, this has meant that recruiting new members in recent years hasn't been been easy. We've gone through some rocky times in the past few years but we're now on top. We've resolved a lot of our difficulties and are in business for the long haul.

The Elks order has traditionally been focused on charity work. This was true at the beginning and is true today. Our Lodge holds several fundraisers during the year that benefit our various charities.

At the National level, every member contributes something every year to the Elks National Foundation.

At the Regional (California-Hawaii) level, our lodge raises funds for the Major Project, which helps handicapped children and their families. This is where most of our contributions are sent.

At the Local level, Palo Alto Lodge has a history of approving many applications for donations from local groups whose very existence depends on public contributions. These groups include the Palo Alto Little League (we're a 50-year sponsor), a girls and a boys Sea Scout Ship as well as other Scouting programs, the Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, and Adolescent Counseling Services. In addition our Lodge sponsors an annual hoop shoot contest, drug awareness campaigns, Kids ID programs at local street fairs, and scholarships. Many of these activities are the result of bequests to our Lodge in the form of trusts, where we use the yearly interest to fund these activities.

Like all Elks Lodges, Palo Alto Lodge provides its members with a quiet, congenial place to meet friends and fellow Members. For our more senior members, the Lodge has become a hub of their daily activities, an important and valuable part of our daily lives.