DeKalb ELKS Challenge American Legion With Matching Grant

The DeKalb Elks Lodge 765 has challenged the DeKalb American Legion Post 66 with a matching grant program. This grant is in the amount of $3,500.00 with a dollar for dollar match for the purchase of American Legion Honor Guard/Color Guard Uniforms.  

To help support this project the DeKalb Legion is reaching out to clubs, organizations, foundations, and veteran friends to support this very generous offer by the DeKalb Elks.

Each year the DeKalb American Legion performs over 50 activities to honor veterans or civic events. The Legion also helps local veterans with a variety of causes. In their ongoing educational program,  Legion members work with schools and groups with programs and activities about veterans and the military.

The DeKalb American Legion has about 25 members that volunteer their time to attend events, funerals, and activities in DeKalb County. The cost of each honor guard uniform is $500.00 + and includes a variety of matching uniforms items that can be worn in the variety of weather patterns. This past year the Military Honor Guard attended funerals providing rifle vollies and TAPS with the weather conditions ranging from 96 degrees to 25 below windchill.

The American Legion is a non-profit organization and all money raised from this challenge goes to the Honor Guard and Color Guard uniform fund. If local families or businesses know of any opportunity to assist the American Legion with funding their share please contact Manuel ‘Manny’ Olalde (contact below) with the source of donations. Any amount will help them reach their goals. Each person, club or organization that donate will receive a personal thank you letter from the American Legions and Commander Daniel  Gallagher. 

The goal is to raise this money by Veteran’s Day, November 11, 2019. The American Legion wants to thank people and organizations in advance for helping with this special campaign. On behalf of the over 200 DeKalb American Legion members, thank you for honoring the efforts of the service organization

Manuel Olalde: Olalde481@aol.com | phone: 630-768-0872 Vice-Chair – DeKalb American LegionCo-Chair Uniform Fund