Pictured from left: Elk Bill Lewis, school custodian Wendell Pasley, Elk Mary Zachary, administrative assist Natasha Mapp and supervisor custodian Annie Kemp.

On Monday, July 15, members from Lake Oconee Elks Lodge No. 2849 delivered 100 backpacks filled with school supplies (folders, notebook paper, crayons, colored pencils, markers, rulers, erasers, glue sticks, pencil pouches, pencils and pens), along with 70 coats (for later in the year when it turns cold) to M.E.Lewis Elementary School in Hancock County. The project was made possible by a grant from the Elks National Foundation. School administrative assistant Natasha Mapp met the Elks at the school and Wendell Pasley, custodian, and Annie Kemp, supervision custodian, helped to unload all of the backpacks and coats and take them into the school. Mapp thanked the Elks for their contributions, which will enable some of the students who are not able to afford their own school supplies or coats for colder months, to be able to start the school year off in a positive way.