Kailua Elks Add Members, Set Inaugural Golf Tournament

Acquiring a permanent clubhouse at 48 Maluniu Ave. might just be the best thing that ever happened to Kailua Elks Lodge No. 2230.

“We’ve been able to expand our membership quite greatly in the last year. We’ve picked up almost 150 members,” said Elks National Foundation

Kailua Lodge chairman Robert Kenyon. Total club membership, he said, is just above 500 right now. “We’re starting to expand our program a little bit compared to what we’ve done in the past, based on our membership numbers.”

Part of the bigger scope the Elks are taking on is the inaugural Lanikai Scramble golf tournament, to be held at 11 a.m. May 4 at Mid Pacific Country Club. The dual format features a two-man team scramble and four-hole horse race.

Proceeds support Kailua Elks projects, including scholarships, school and community service, and its Major Project program, which helps fund home therapists for disabled children. The Elks also have a hand in the Wounded Warrior Project Hawaii at Kaneohe Marine base, the post-traumatic stress disorder ward at Tripler Army Medical Center and Homeless Veterans Home in Kalihi.

“We’ve had some smaller tournaments in the previous years, but nothing of this magnitude, so we decided to go to Mid Pac for this one,” Kenyon said. “We plan to turn it into a yearly event.”

Entry fee is $150, which includes dinner at the post-tourney awards ceremony. Deadline is April 15. Interested golfers may pick up applications at the lodge or email kailuaelks2230@gmail.com.