Elks youth activities to offer week of fun for area youngsters

By Steve Moyer

Nevada Daily Mail

Nevada Elks Lodge 564 has a full week of activities planned for area youth during its annual Youth Activities Week.

The Elks are joining with other area clubs and agencies to provide the activities. In addition to the activities, the Elks are sponsoring a book drive and a fund drive for playground equipment at Cedar Ridge State School.

The week kicks off with a Pitch, Hit & Run contest for boys and girls from 7 to 14 at the Twin Lakes Ball Park. The City of Nevada's Parks and Recreation Department and the Elks have teamed up to host the contest which is an official skills competition sponsored nationally by Major League Baseball.

No fee is required for a child to enter but a parent or guardian must attend with the child and sign a permission slip. The contest will be held twice, once at 10 a.m. and once at 3 p.m. Contestants can enter only once. Registration opens 30 minutes before each contest.

Carol Branham, Parks and Recreation director, said that the contest is a perennial favorite. "We've had kids from Joplin and Branson come into town to compete, they all really love it."

Branham said that the city had put in to host a sectional contest but had not heard back from the national group. She said that since there are so many children in the area with good athletic ability, and the city has good recreational facilities, it makes Nevada a logical place to hold a sectional event.

"We know we have the talent in the area to do well, and we have the facilities to handle the contest," Branham said.

The Elks are teaming up with the city a second time during the week on Tuesday for a Fun With Sports day at Candle Creek RV and Miniature Golf. The children will play for free.

May 5 is Cinco de Mayo and the Elks are teaming with the Nevada Diversity Concerns Committee to have a dinner at Caza Azteca restaurant at 3 p.m., right after school. The Elks are providing all students who participate a free certificate for their dinner. The meal will be conducted entirely in Spanish, with the help of cue cards that have a few handy Spanish phrases in them. The dinner is open to the public but reservations are requested

On May 6, the Elks will distribute "Billy's Safe Adventure," a stranger awareness activity book, to all kindergartners and first graders in Vernon County. The book is designed to prepare and teach children the fundamentals of being safe. Each book has a certificate of achievement so parents can complete it and display it for the child.

"This is something that a kid can do on their own with a little help from parents." said Jason Meisenheimer, chairman of the Elks Youth Activity Committee.

The book drive is slated to help Children's Mercy Hospital, where the donated books will be distributed to patients. All during the week of May 2 to May 8 there will be three collection points, Nevada Community Center, 200 N. Ash; the Nevada Elks Lodge, 501 N. Centennial Blvd.; and Nevada Chiropractic Clinic, 200 S. Alma.

"We're asking parents to look for any children's books, video games or tapes that are appropriate for anyone birth to age 18," said Meisenheimer.