Elks South Central District Motorcycle Committee

The Elks, one of the premier charity organizations, raises money for many different local and state charities. There are many different committees that raise this money, and the motorcycle committee is one of the biggest.

In the state of New Jersey, there is 112 lodges throughout the state. 52 of these lodges have a motorcycle committee. To be in this committee, is not that you just ride, you have to remember that you are an Elk first. There are no non Elk members in our committees, and every member has to be approved by the exalted ruler, who runs the lodge.

The South Central District, which consists of 9 lodges, cover our general area, and have about 2400 members. These lodges are in Long Branch, Eatontown, Red Bank, Middletown, Keyport, Old Bridge, Freehold, Jamesburg, and Millstone. 8 of these lodges have this committee and have roughly 150 members between the lodges.

Throughout the year, the motorcycle committee run a few major events, and also travel the state to other events. The major events they do for Elkdome are the Brain Injured children run or the BIC run, The Miracle Run, The Jim Hall Homeless Veterans run, and the Army of Hope. These run raise money for different charities. The BIC run this year raised $44,700, which went directly to Camp Robin and a school in Sayerville for brain injured children. The year before, that same run raised $41,760.

This year's Miracle Run has not happened yet, but last year's total was $100,000. That money goes to our Elks State Project Camp Moore, located in Haskell, NJ. The camp is designed for children and adults with special needs. The camp offers a 1 on 1 with each of the campers. With the money raised, the camp is offered with no charge to any family.

The Jim Hall Homeless Veterans run, raises money for our New Jersey Veterans who have fell on hardships and are homeless. This money helps them find places to live and give them the things they need to start living in their own places. It has already helped numerous Vets get into a place and the run is growing bigger each year.

The Army of Hope is a event that the committee has been a big part of over the years. This event is to help the families of NJ who have lost their loved ones serving our country. The Elks bring these families down for a BBQ to honor the men and women we lost. The money raised helps these families in various ways, to help relieve the burdens left by the loss.

A few of the non-Elk events that they do are the Memorial Day Services at the PNC Veitnam Memorial. There is an annual trip to the Brigadier General Doyle cemetary to honor those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. Another big one they do is the Run for the Fallen. This is an event that starts in Cape May and ends at PNC Bank Art Center over a 4 day period. This Run is done by active duty members and the stop every mile to honor one of New Jerseys military members who lost their lives. The family members are at each of these markers and the Elks and the motorcycle committee stand with these families so they do not need to stand alone.

The work that these members do on this committee is nothing shy of amazing. To give you an idea of the time and effort, just the South Central District alone raised a total of $159,866 last year. Their volunteer hours that put in last year were close to 10,000 hours. The miles the put on the road going to events and meeting was roughly 65000 last year alone.

These men and women deserve congratulations for their efforts. They continue to amaze everyone with their work, and every year they outdo the previous year. So when you see a group of riders going down the road, please remember these facts, and don' look down upon them. These members are there to help everyone and will stop and help if you are in trouble. I do not ride myself, but I do go to these events and it amazes me each year that with the amount of people that come, there is never any problems.

If you would like any more information on the Elks and the Motorcycle Committee, please contact one of the local lodges listed above. There is much more that the Elks do, but this was to inform everyone to don't judge a book by its cover.