After a story about the Milwaukie-Portland Elks Lodge appeared in The Oregonian and on OregonLive last week, lodge leaders received more than 40 phone calls and emails from prospective members that weekend.
“All of them said, ‘I saw The Oregonian article and we’ve been interested in joining for years. Now is the time,’” said Jenny Hollingsworth, the lodge’s esteemed leading knight and president-elect.
The inquiries are the latest sign of the lodge’s growth. The Milwaukie-Portland Elks Lodge is the third-fastest-growing Elks lodge in the nation, with membership topping 2,540. That’s quite a turnaround for a lodge that was struggling to stay afloat just 15 years ago…