May 2025 Moose Tracks

A Word From our President

Happy May, Moose 42!

What a year!

I thank our members and the Board of Officers for the amazing things we have accomplished this year! Our Chapter Women, Moose Legion, and Standing Committees continue to inspire change and set the example of charity and volunteerism. I appreciate your confidence as I take on another year as your Lodge President. Thank you to all our board members responsible for being your Lodge officers with me. Your support means everything! A special thanks to our spouses and families who sacrifice their time and energy alongside us.

We have a lot of small, fun changes happening around the lodge. With Summer just around the corner, I am looking forward to seeing everyone on the pool deck, hanging around or eating some delicious food, “Killing the Keg” on the last Saturday of each month, playing the new Queen of Hearts, and enjoying our game room and social quarters with “Tap TV”! Soon enough, we will see barbeque smoke billowing from the new Moose Legion BBQ Pit as they do their annual fundraising events!

Around the fraternity, we have the next District 2 meeting at Moosehaven, where our beloved seniors will host the First Annual Joey Venuto Fishing Tournament! The general membership meeting starts at 11 a.m., and the tournament will begin afterward. Come by and see what your FMA District is up to! We also have the Moose International Conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from May 22nd through May 27th.

Implementing fun activities for members and their families while raising money for our Mooseheart chil-dren and Moosehaven seniors is the goal! We need your help with the ideas and how to get them done! Come by your Lodge and attend the General Membership meetings on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month. Our next meeting will be on May 6th at 7 p.m. and May 20th at 7 p.m. Hope to see you there!

Thank you to all our members! Have a Magnificent May!

Fraternally,
Alvin J. Camacho
President – LOOM Mandarin Lodge 42

Administrator’s Thoughts

Another year in the books for ol’ 42!

Looking back at this past fiscal year, we have done some pretty awesome things. Here are just a few:

• By implementing the Mandarin Moose 42 Financial Assistance Fund, your Lodge was able to help 3 families this year.
• Mandarin #42 donated over $33,000 to our moose charities.
• Donations totaling over $2,000 to local community charities.
• Treated Moosehaven residents to monthly Breakfasts and Dinners.
• Donated and delivered 4 generators to the victims of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
• Awarded 3 amazing students with our Scholarship Awards totaling $10,000.

Let’s be even more awesome next year!

Wise Words From the WOTM

The Women of the Moose had a great turnout for the Children’s Easter party and Easter Egg Hunt! We had 18 children, including teenagers, along with their parents and grandparents. We served pizza and fruit cups to all in attendance and provided Easter baskets, along with gifts of their choice. The children enjoyed a visit from the Easter Bunny, and some gave him gifts to show their affection. I would like to thank those who donated candy and plastic eggs for the event. Everything is greatly appreciated.

The Chapter Installation Ceremony was conducted on April 10 at 6:00 PM with Faye Kemp as the Installing Regent. Refreshments and cake were served. I am pleased to announce that I will be your Senior Regent for the coming year, along with Kimberly as Treasurer, Jo Ortiz as Secretary, and Donna King as Guide. We look forward to another great year for the Chapter!

We are in the middle of conducting a Spring Raffle. We have three raffle baskets with approximately $150 in products in each basket, including a gift certificate for a hair salon, a gift certificate for a mani/pedis, and a bottle of wine. The baskets are in the lobby under the marquee, with a list of contents attached to each basket. There will be three winners, and you do not need to be present to win! The date of the drawing will be announced later. Please see me to purchase the tickets.

We will resume the bake sale in May and welcome any who would like to contribute by donating baked goods and/or helping with the bake sale. It is very rewarding for our members to enjoy our desserts and earn money for our endowment for Moosehaven and Mooseheart.
The Moosehaven dinner was held on April 11th with 39 residents in attendance with an Easter theme. Thank you to those who volunteered to decorate, bake desserts, serve, and help with the cleanup. The next Moosehaven dinner will be on May 9.

Our next Chapter meeting will be on May 8 at 6:30 PM. With the new Chapter year beginning on May 1, we strive to make each year better for the Women of the Moose and the Chapter. We welcome new ideas on ways to improve membership attendance, fraternalism, as well as improving the Chapter in other ways possible.

Best wishes to all!

Normagene Pellechio
Senior Regent

Social Quarter Manager Says

Welcome to May!

We have some exciting new events happening at the lodge! Come on out every Tuesday night from 5-10pm for pizza and pitcher night! We have plenty of board and card games available for this family friendly night! Bring the kids for a pizza and a pitcher of soda, while the adults enjoy a pizza and a pitcher of beer! We are also starting a Kill the Keg night the last Saturday of every month from 7-10pm featuring $3 drafts! We are looking forward to seeing you!!

Thank you to all who came out to help us with our semi-annual Spruce the Moose! Our pool deck is looking nice and inviting! Speaking of: we are all super excited for the summer months and the opening of our Tiki Bar!!! Our soft open-ing/training day will be Saturday May 10th, come put our Tiki-Tenders to the test with those frozen and tropical drinks! The Tiki bar will be staffed on Saturdays and Sundays from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend. We have some live entertainment and special events planned, so be on the lookout for calendar announcements! May will feature a few new beverage options: Sun Cruiser hard iced tea and lemonade, Sam Adams Summer Ale on Tap, and Garage Beer also on tap.

On that note, you ARE allowed to bring in your Yeti/Tumbler cups to keep your drinks cold, BUT you must show the SQA on duty that it is EMPTY when you arrive and EMPTY when you leave. No outside alcohol is permitted, or to be taken off premise.

REMINDER: We are a members’ only establishment, which means you MUST show proof of membership to the attendant on duty via your Moose Membership card upon entry. All qualified guests must be signed in our guestbook located next to the kitchen door. Qualified guests are persons 21 years and older who have not been signed in more than two times. At the 2nd visit, the guests must apply for membership in order to return to the lodge. Thank you for bringing in potential new members!

Looking forward to another month of fun, fellowship, great food, great bands, and great people! Don’t forget to ‘Do some good thing for someone each day’!

See ya’ at 42!
Eric McCanna
Social Quarters Manager

Lodge Committee Communications

From the Gaming Committee

The long-awaited Queen of Hearts is finally here. She is on the board, hiding with her money. It’s your turn to find her. The rules of play along with the board itself will be posted soon. Ticket sales start on May 1st, with the first draw happening on May 13th. Tickets are $2 each. Please see the SQA on duty to purchase your tickets.

Scholarship Committee

The Scholarship Committee is proud to announce that we are awarding three scholarships for the 2025-2026 school year. Thank you so much to everyone who applied for this year’s awards.

With a $5,000 award, Avishka Fulgavkar, daughter of member Ash Fulgavkar, who will be attending the University of Florida as a freshman in August. She plans to major in psychology. After school, she plans to attend medical school to become a psychiatrist. She says she chose this career because “psychological disorders impact millions globally.” She will give back to her community by “raising awareness for the causes” she believes in.

The winner of a $3,500 award, Benjamin Starnes, son of members David and Dori Starnes, who will be attending the Fire Academy at First Coast Technical and plans to continue on to paramedic school once he has his fire certification. Ben says that serving his community is “the entire job” of a first responder, and he is “very passionate about helping people.”

The $1,500 award goes to Noah Ferrizzi, son of member Chris Ferrizzi, who is currently a sophomore at Holy Cross College in Indiana, majoring in philosophy. He says he chose this major “to improve my critical thinking skills as well as my ability to argue logically.” He plans to attend graduate school at Notre Dame University’s Mendoza College of Business after graduation.

Moose Legion is at it Again!

To our Moose 42 family,

Happy May to everyone.

Thank you for all your continued support of the Moose Legion 42 committee. Thank you to all our Moose Legionnaires who continue to be an example of faith, hope, and charity – the cornerstone of the Moose Legion.

We will have our Memorial Day Cookout on Monday May 26th. Please come out and support your Moose Legionnaires and our Lodge. We will be cooking Ribs, Pork Butt, Chicken Quarters. Sides will be Smoked Mac & Cheese, Baked Beans with a roll.

For May we are doing a Raffle for Dave & Busters. For $10.00 a Ticket you will re-ceive a party for up to 15 guests for 3 hours. That includes 18 free items and a bo-nus that if you win the drawing you will get your $10.00 back. Please see the flyers posted in the lodge for more details. To purchase tickets please see a Moose Le-gionnaire or your Social Quarter’s Staff Member.

Your support provides for us to be able to support the Mandarin Moose Legion Committee. Thank you to my Moose Legion brothers, the Women of the Moose, and all those who helped with the barbecue. Your support is greatly appreciated, as always.

The Moose organization is the largest fraternal organization in the world! If you are interested in being a member of the Lodge and the Moose Legion, and being a part of this great organization in what we do for our beloved seniors at Moosehaven and our adopted children at Mooseheart, we welcome you to join us. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask any Moose Legionnaire and we will assist you in answering any questions. You may join us as a guest at our meetings to learn more about what we do, as well. We bring fun, fellowship and service together. Also, when you become a Moose Legionnaire, the Moose Legion will pay you.

We are happy to announce that the Seminole 81 Celebration will be held June 6th, 7th and 8th, 2025, at Moose Lodge 624, located at 624 NE Williams St, Lake City, FL 32055. With your support, the Mandarin Moose Legion Committee continues to support our Lodge, the Mandarin Moose Lodge Scholarship Fund, the FMA Emer-gency Relief Fund, the Mooseheart Wish List, the Moosehaven Wish List, and other worthy causes. It is with the greatest privilege that we can serve. Mandarin Moose 42, I continue to be thankful for your continued fellowship and support.

Fraternally,
Matt Durbin , Moose Legion Chairman