Eagles Aerie 1891 Celebrates 100 Years
By SCOTT McCLOSKEY Staff WriterArticle Photos
The Elm Grove Eagles Aerie 1891 is celebrating its 100th anniversary beginning today with activities on tap through Saturday.
Larry Dierkes, president of the Elm Grove Eagles, said he has been a continuous member of the fraternal organization for 50 years.
"It has been quite a privilege to be a member," he said.
Dierkes said it has meant a lot to him to see what the organization has done over the years by donating to charitable causes. He said another important element of his time with the club has been the great fellowship of the members. He said he has made a lot of good friends over the years through the organization.
The Elm Grove Eagles first met in 1909 at 2164 National Road, Elm Grove. That building later became the Valley Camp Coal Co. store. In 1939, the Eagles moved to its second home at 2334 National Road, but the club was later forced to move again due to construction of Interstate 70.
The Eagles' present location is 2153 National Road, where the club has gathered since 1969.
The Elm Grove club has made yearly donations to numerous groups and causes, including charities, fire victims, the sick, the police, sheriff's and fire departments, baseball, softball, golf tournaments, school proms, scholarships and many other causes.
The club's motto is "People helping people." Nationally, the Eagles donates more than $100 million a year to local communities and charities.
The Fraternal Order of Eagles is an international, nonprofit organization uniting fraternally in the spirit of liberty, truth, justice and equality to make human life more desirable by lessening its ills and promoting peace, prosperity, gladness and hope. The Eagles was founded in February 1898 by six theater owners gathered in a Seattle shipyard to discuss a musicians strike. After discussing the matter, they agreed to "bury the hatchet" and form "The Order of Good Things."
As their numbers grew, members selected the Bald Eagle as their official emblem and became "The Fraternal Order of Eagles." The women's auxiliary for the organization traces its roots to 1927. The Eagles' membership exceeds 1.1 million in the U.S. and Canada.
