JACKSON HOLE, WYO –Jackson Elks Lodge No. 1713 gathered to lend a helping hand at the Annual Boy Scout antler pickup on the National Elk Refuge back on Saturday, April 28. This Jackson Hole tradition is the predecessor to the 51st annual Jackson Boy Scout District Elk Antler Auction on the Jackson town square on Saturday May 19.
For the past several years, Jackson Elks Lodge No. 1713 filled a gap in the Boy Scouts’ annual antler pickup, namely feeding hungry Scouts. Hundreds of Scouts, leaders, and their families spend the day scouring the National Elk Refuge for shed elk antlers. Totals for this year are still being tallied, but in 2017 the Boy Scouts sold over 9,500 pounds of collected antlers at auction.
“Collecting all of those antlers makes for some hungry volunteers,” says Jackson Elks Lodge No. 1713’s Exalted Ruler Lisa Sprague.
On the menu were hot dogs, chili, sandwiches, cookies, and other tasty treats donated by local businesses. Jackson Elks Lodge volunteers cooked up and served the food to Scouts as they came in from the field.
Sprague continued, “This is a great opportunity for our Lodge to support local youth and this time-honored community tradition.”
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks has many values in common with the Boy Scouts of America and helping at this event also furthers the Elks’ mission of supporting youth.
Every spring, thousands of elk wintering on the National Elk Refuge lose their antlers before they migrate to their summer range. The Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts from Jackson troops 66, 67, 68, and 268 assist the Refuge with harvesting the shed antlers and at the annual Jackson District Boy Scout Elk Antler Auction they sell them to bidders from around the world who make furniture, wall decorations, jewelry and food products from them.
This annual event supports the National Elk Refuge with 75 percent of auction proceeds going back to habitat enhancement projects on the Refuge. The remaining 25 percent of the sale’s proceeds stay with the Jackson District Boy Scouts to fund day camps, leader and Scout training, and other activities.
“We’re thankful to be able to play a small part in this long-standing community tradition that could only happen here in Jackson Hole,” Sprague stated.
