A tribute to Loyal Knight Cal Bates

A tribute to the vision of Past Loyal Knight Cal Bates

In 2004 Loyal Knight Cal Bates approached the officers and members of Rotterdam Lodge asking that we allocate some money for dictionaries. He was quite adamant that our Lodge should get involved with the Dictionary Project. Initially the membership wanted the distribution of dictionaries to be limited to the Rotterdam school districts. Cal convinced us all that we should also include the schools in the city of Schenectady. Cal could be very persuasive when he truly believed in the value of a project. To date we have distributed 9,384 dictionaries in the Mohonasen, Shalmont, and Schenectady school districts. Thanks to Cal’s vision and the members of the Rotterdam Elks, 9,384 children have a very important tool for success. One man’s vision with the help of his brothers can move mountains. Thank you, Cal. Rest in peace, my brother.