The Pearl River Elks, Lodge 2041, is a chapter of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the United States of America.  

HISTORY OF THE PEARL RIVER LODGE

(AS PRINTED FOR 5OTH ANNIVERSARY IN 2007)

In the 1950's with the growth in population in Rockland County,  particularly in the PearL River/Nanuet area, there was a need for a Fraternal Organization closer at hand.  Several residents- Paul Moltke and Mike Yurch (the first two Exalted Rulers of Pearl River Lodge) come to mind - were Members of the Haverstraw Lodge.   As they and others said, it was a long ride to Haverstraw, but a longer ride home.

Paul and Mike, with some help, were instrumental in laying the foundation for a Lodge in this area.  With the assistance of New York State Lodge Officers, particularly James Gunn, John Schoonmaker and Marty Traugott, a series of meetings were held with interested candidates from the community.  These meetings were held at the Silver Pheasant Inn (now J.F.Keanes) on Middletown Road, opposite Lederle Laboratories (now Wyatt-Ayerst) in Pearl River,  courtesy of the Caramatti brothers who were anxious to be and to help the Elks.

The Institution of the Lodge with 135 Charter Members was on June 2, 1957 at Platzl's Brauhaus in Pomona.  Our Sponsoring or Mother Lodge was the Haverstraw Lodge No.877, whose Officers and Members continue to be helpful to our Lodge.  Elks from the entire area attended.

As a temporary measure we held our periodic Meetings anđ Functions at the Lederle Union Hall at the corner of Middletown and Crooked Hill Roads ( where we now have "The Meadows" Apartments- condominiums for seniors).

The Officers and Committee Members explored various sites for a permanent Lodge Home in our area.  We heard of the availability of a summer Vacation Resort called "The Polter's Place in Nanuet", abandoned for a number of years and in a sad state of disrepair.  The Asking Price was an "outrageous" $ 28,500 for the main structure, a Steward's home and barn on 4 1/2 acres. The property also included a pond and a stream.

The proposal to buy was nearly turned down by the members arguments were: it was too costly, the place was a mess, it needed a lot of work and it was in Nanuet! (not in Pearl River). All the negatives were rolled out but, thankfully cooler heads prevailed and the Membership approved the purchase.  A Bond Drive aided greatly in speeding up the payment of the mortgage.

A lot of work went into cleaning up and renovating the premises and grounds. we moved into "our new Lodge" in 1958.  Some of the more important and formal Meetings were held at the George E.Miller Schoo1, which was  and continues to be most helpful to our Lodge. BY the way, the 1 former Polter's "Solarium"( which we had no use for) quickly became the "Bar"(which we did have use for).

Several years later, with a growing Membership and increasing attendance at a number of functions, a large Meeting Room (cinder block construction) was built. The Bar returned to the former room we had been using for both Meetings and Functions. This was a great relief and served our purposes well for a number of years.

Then, we had the disastrous fire in 1985, which made us homeless for several years, while the Officers and Committee Members contacted for plans and building of our current structure on now is now called Elks Drive (off Blauvelt Road) in Nanuet.  In the interim, we were able to continue our Lodge Meetings through the courtesy of several Organizations and Churches - Ancient Order of Hibernians, American Legion and St.Aedan's - which kindly allowed us the use of their facilities.

We moved into our new Lodge facility, a well designed structure with a Grand Meeting/Banquet Room, which was dedicated to the memory of Past Exalted Ruler Gerard P.Day, who served our Lodge so well over a number of years.

Lodge Membership continued to grow at the new facility with well over 1000 Members in 1997.  The Lodge maintains an active Social, Charitable and Patriotic Program. For example, with the assistance of the Grand Lodge and our New York State Association, each year the Lodge has:

○ Granted Scholarships to worthy students

○ Through a Charity Ball contributed to the Cerebral Palsy Program of the New York State Association

○ Sponsored Hoop Shoots and Bowling Contests for Youth

○ Ran a l0K Race for Charity

○ Held Flag Day Services (initiated by the BPOE and later adopted by Congress)

○ Assisted the less fortunate of our Community by arranging for Food Baskets and a number of other worthwhile Social and Charitable endeavors.

Our Lodge currently has a very competent Banquet Manager and House Committee assisting us in the handling of many events.  It is available for Weddings Anniversaries, Class Reunions, Charitable Fund Raisers and the like.  For further information contact the Banquet Manager or House Committee Chairman at 914-623-2949 or 914-623-2041.

As part of this Lodge History, mention must be made of the most welcome assistance and contributions in so many ways from the women, the wives, daughters and friends of the Elk male Members, who formed an "Emblem Club" at the very outset. These Club Members provided much help at the Elk functions and encouraged the many activities of the Lodge. The Emblem Club is no longer active as such.  This followed a Grand Lodge directive in 1995 that female Members must be accepted in the Lodge itself with all rights and privileges as Regular Members.