Elks members and dignitaries at Air Ronge's Gordon Denny Community School. (Facebook/La Ronge Elks)

By Derek Cornet

giving back

La Ronge Elks Club recognized for outstanding community service

Feb 20, 2025 | 3:58 PM

The good work of the members of the La Ronge Elks Club hasn’t gone unnoticed.

A number of dignitaries were in the tri-communities last week to see firsthand the work the service club is doing to make the area a better place to live. They included Provincial Elks Exalted Ruler Drew Kenke, Grand Lecturing Knight Eugene Hartter, and past Elks of Canada Grand Exalted Rulers Maurice Koszman and Leonard Shain.

“You definitely don’t do it for the notoriety,” explained La Ronge Elks member Curtis Skalicky.

“You do it because you love your community and when you see individuals at a national level liking your

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As part of their visit, the dignitaries toured several facilities such as Gordon Denny Community School, the Jonas Roberts Memorial Community Centre, La Ronge Health Centre, Mel Hegland Uniplex and NorthSask Special Needs. They were also given a performance by the Tri-Community Dance Club.

While many service clubs across the country are declining, Skalicky noted that doesn’t seem to be the case for La Ronge. He said 40 to 50 people regularly volunteer with them and there’s a few new members every year.

“I’m not young anymore either, but we pride ourselves that when we go out to do a community event, we have fun,” he added.

“You get to enjoy the day with the other people who are in the lodge. You have some fun, you do some work, you’re able to see firsthand the hard work you do and the money that you raise when you give it to another organization.”

The La Ronge Elks Club donates thousands of dollars every year to both organizations and individuals. For instance, the club takes requests from residents who need assistance with meals and accommodations if they need to take a child south for medical reasons.

The club also makes numerous donations to several tri-community causes. Since 2015, they have donated $75,000 just to the Lac La Ronge Food Bank.

“With this new long-term care facility, we made a decision that we are going to find some way to donate a significant donation to that, because that’s probably the biggest event or charity that’s going to be coming online in our community for quite some time here,” Skalicky said.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com