Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks

In 1972, the Elks expelled the head of the Ridgewood lodge, Richard J. Zelenka, because of his advocacy against the Elks' discriminatory policies which limited membership to white men.[8][9] By the following year, however, a resolution to repeal the discriminatory clause of the national constitution passed, desegregating the organization.[10][11]

In Beynon v. St. George-Dixie Lodge 1743 (1993),[12] the Utah Supreme Court ruled that while freedom of association allowed the Elks to remain a men-only organization, "the Elks may not avail itself of the benefits of a liquor license and the license's concomitant state regulation" as long as it violated the Utah State Civil Rights Act. Faced with losing their liquor licenses if they did not admit women, the Elks Lodges of Utah voted to become unisex in June 1993,[13] which was followed by a vote at the Elks National Convention in July 1995[14] to remove the word "male" from the national membership requirements.

Grand Lodge in Chicago, Illinois

The Elks' national headquarters are located in Chicago at the Elks National Veterans Memorial and Headquarters, overlooking Lincoln Park, near Lake Michigan. This building was originally conceived as a memorial to the nearly 1,000 Elk brothers who were lost in World War I. The cornerstone was laid July 7, 1924, and the building was officially dedicated on July 14, 1926.[18][19]

The rotunda displays murals and statues illustrating the Elks' four cardinal virtues: charity, justice, brotherly love and fidelity. The friezes depict the "Triumphs of War" on one side and "Triumphs of Peace" on the other. The entrance is flanked by large bronze elks.[20]

The BPOE is organized on five levels: the national or "grand" level, the regional level, the state level, the district level and the local lodge level. The highest level is the Grand Lodge, which meets in convention annually. The Grand Lodge elects all the officers of the order, such as the Grand Exalted Ruler—the chief executive officer of the organization—Grand Secretary, Grand Esteemed Leading Knight, Grand Esteemed Loyal Knight, Grand Esteemed Lecturing Knight, Grand Treasurer, Grand Tiler (in charge of regalia), Grand Inner Guard and Grand Trustees. The three Knights assist the Grand Exalted Ruler and officiate in his absence; furthermore, the Grand Esteemed Loyal Knight acts a prosecutor in cases when an Elk is accused of an offense against the order. The Grand Trustee have general authority over assets and property owned by the order. The Grand Esquire is appointed by the Grand Exalted Ruler and organizes the Grand Lodges and serves as marshal of Elks parades. The Grand Chaplain is also appointed by the Grand Exalted Ruler.[21]

Elks Magazine is published 10 times a year and goes to all members.[22]

This is an incomplete list of the organization's Grand Exalted Rulers:

Source:[23]

The state level organizations are called "State Associations"; state level officers include presidents, vice presidents, secretaries and treasurers. Local groups are called "Subordinate Lodges". Lodges officers are essentially the same as the ones on the national level, with "Grand" prefix removed. Lodges also may establish dinner and recreational clubs for members. In 1979, there were 2,200 lodges.[24] Lodges which are incorporated are required to be governed by a board of directors. Otherwise, the Lodge Trustees are the governing board.

Like many other fraternal orders, the Elks at one point sponsored an insurance fund. The Elks Mutual Benefit Association was founded in 1878. At the 1885 Grand Lodge, it was reported that the EMBA was prosperous, but its finances were carelessly managed. The Association was disbanded after the 1907 Grand Lodge passed a resolution banning mutual or insurance features, as well as degrees and auxiliaries.[25]

Despite its 1907 resolution banning any auxiliaries, the Elks at one point had a youth affiliate for young men called the Antlers. The first chapter was organized in February 1922 by San Francisco Lodge #3. The 1927 Grand Lodge approved the junior order, granting the Grand Exalted Ruler the power to permit subordinate lodges to instituted organizations for males under 21. In 1933, there were 45 local units of the Antlers with 3,584 members. However, the Antlers numbers were decimated during the Second World War, with so many young men having gone off to war. Despite 86 local Antlers groups still existing in 1946, the Grand Lodge deleted all reference to them in their constitution and bylaws that year. However, some local Antlers groups were still active in 1979, according to one source.[26]

Elk's Carnival in Toledo, Ohio, 1912

Most Elks lodges operate a social quarters with a private bar. According to sociologists Alvin J. Schmidt and Nicholas Babchuk, members primarily joined the Elks to be "provided with entertainment, liquor, and food at reasonable rates" in the social quarters.[27]

Lodges are encouraged to participate in national Elks charity programs. There are also State Elks Associations charity programs. This usually includes a State Major Project. Elks Lodges are usually involved in other local charitable efforts.

Due to the willingness of most Elks Lodges to respond to community needs and events, it is common to turn the BPOE abbreviation into a backronym for "Best People on Earth".[28][29][30]

Established in 1928, the Elks National Foundation is the charitable arm of the BPOE. The foundation, with an endowment valued at more than $750 million, has contributed more than $500 million toward Elks' charitable projects nationwide. Since inception, the Elks have received more than $288.7 million in contributions and bequests. As of the close of the 2021 fiscal year, they boast more than 120,000 active donors and an endowment fund valued at $833.1 million.[31]

The Elks pledge that "So long as there are veterans, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks will never forget them."[32]

• Elks Veterans Memorial in Chicago, Illinois
• The Army of Hope, established in 2003, primarily serves families of deployed service members.[33][34]
• Adopt-a-Veteran Program
• Freedom Grants!
• Veterans Leather Program
• Veterans Remembrance
• Playing Cards for Veterans
• Re-Creation USA

• Elks National Foundation Scholarships
• Hoop Shoot (National free throw contest)
• Drug Awareness
• Soccer Shoot
• Junior Golf Program
• Dictionary Project
• Youth Recognition

1919 Flag Day Resolution barring membership from people perceived as unpatriotic

The Elks have shown their devotion to Americanism by conducting bond drives, promoting civil defense programs, and Flag Day observances. During World War II, they designated the week of March 15, 1942, as "Win the War Week", and helped recruit for the United States Army Air Corps. An "Elks National Service Commission" was in operation from 1946 to 1950, and the Grand Lodge adopted a "Declaration of American Principles" in 1961 in Miami.[35]

The Elks National Home is a retirement home in Bedford, Virginia, built in 1916. In late 2013, the Elks sold the home to a private organization.

Deceased and otherwise absent lodge members are recalled each evening at 11 p.m. Chimes or sometimes a bell will be rung 11 times and the Lodge Esquire intones, "It is the Hour of Recollection." The Exalted Ruler or a member designated by him gives the 11 o'clock toast, of which this version is the most common:

You have heard the tolling of eleven strokes. This is to impress upon you that with us the hour of eleven has a tender significance. Wherever Elks may roam, whatever their lot in life may be, when this hour falls upon the dial of night, the great heart of Elkdom swells and throbs. It is the golden hour of recollection, the homecoming of those who wander, the mystic roll call of those who will come no more. Living or dead, Elks are never forgotten, never forsaken. Morning and noon may pass them by, the light of day sink heedlessly in the West, but ere the shadows of midnight shall fall, the chimes of memory will be pealing forth the friendly message: "To Our Absent Members."

— http://www.elks.org/

The communal burial ground and statue for Elks Lodge #315 at Greenlawn Memorial Park in Newport News, Virginia

The Elks have communal cemetery plots, which are often marked with impressive statuary.

• Willie Keeler, Brooklyn, New York Lodge #22[36]
• Babe Ruth, New York, New York Lodge #1
• King Kelly, Boston, Massachusetts Lodge #10

• Dwight D. Eisenhower
• Gerald R. Ford, Grand Rapids, Michigan Lodge #48
• Warren G. Harding, Marion, Ohio #32
• John F. Kennedy, Boston, Massachusetts Lodge #10[24]
• Franklin D. Roosevelt, Poughkeepsie, New York #275[24]
• Harry S. Truman, Kansas City, Missouri Lodge #26[24]

• Alben W. Barkley, 35th vice president of the United States[37]

• Fred P. Cone, Florida (1937–1941)[38]
• David Sholtz, Governor Florida (1933–1937), Exalted Ruler of Florida.[39]
• William M. Tuck, Danville, Virginia, Lodge #227 Governor of Virginia (1946–1950)

• Richard E. Connell, United States Representative representing New York[40]
• Barry Goldwater, United States Senator representing Arizona[24]

• Lonnie O. Aulds, member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1968 to 1972, real estate developer in Shreveport, Louisiana[41]
• Edward Francis Blewitt, Pennsylvania State Senator and businessman. Great-grandfather of the 46th and current President of the United States, Joe Biden[42]
• Emory Cole, lawyer and state legislature in Baltimore, Maryland[43]
• Richard J. Daley, 48th Mayor of Chicago[24]
• David Dank, member of Oklahoma House of Representatives since 2007[44]
• Gilbert L. Dupré, state representative and district court judge in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana
• Truly Hatchett, first African American member of the Maryland House of Delegates and real estate investor[45]
• John McCormack, 45th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives[37]
• A. J. Rosier, Wyoming state senator[46]

• Captain Eddie Rickenbacker[47]

• Jack Benny[37]
• Irving Berlin[37]
• Lawrence Welk[37]