ONLY IN EAST COUNTY
Printer-friendly version Mayor Mark Lewis and Mother Goose congratulate winners in the Chicken Hat contest at El Cajon’s Oktoberfest, sponsored by the German American Societies. Alpine dancers add to the festive atmosphere at La Mesa’s Oktoberfest. Printer-friendly version
HUNDREDS FLOCK TO ELKS OKTOBERFEST
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery October 20, 2008 (El Cajon) – Over 800 people flocked to an Oktoberfest celebration hosted by El Cajon’s Elks Lodge 1812, a tradition that dates back to 1975. “I started the Oktoberfest,” said Giselle Howard (photo, left), who was also the festival’s first Oktoberfest Queen. “This is why every year, they honor me.” Still radiant at 86, Howard wore her original dress and tiara as a fellow Elk pushed her wheelchair in the Oktoberfest Parade. The aromas of steak and bratwurst simmering on a barbecue filled the air, along with scents of potato pancakes and other traditional German fare. El Cajon Mayor Mark Lewis donned a chicken hat to march in Elks’ Oktoberfest parade. Alpen Musikanten led the parade, providing musical accompaniment that included tuba, trumpet, flugelhorn, and drums. Mayor Mark Lewis, wearing a chicken hat, marched in the parade along with Elks leaders in German costumes hoisting beer steins. “We’ve been playing together for 20 years,” said Hans Reuter of Alpine, a retired aerospace engineer in the band. “We come from all over San Diego. We played at La Mesa’s Oktoberfest for 14 years and got replaced by a rock band!” Here, however, the crowd seems delighted with the festive music. Other members of the band include a retired Naval officer on tuba, drummer Roger Krauel, a Superior Court Judge, and Alan Adams, organizer of an upcoming Dixieland Jazz Thanksgiving event in Mission Valley. Exalted Ruler Kathleen Monsees savors Oktoberfest celebration. The days of Elks lodges as all-male bastions are long gone. The El Cajon club not only has a woman as its Exalted Leader, but has also fully integrated some of its most traditional rituals—including the annual keg tap and beer-drinking contest. “This year, we had a girl win the girls’ contest and a guy win the guys’ contest. Then we had the winning girl challenge the winning guy – and she won!” said Bill Kloor. “I never saw anybody drink beer so fast!” LARC leader Patty Cody sells stuffed toys to benefit retarded citizens. “This is our major fundraiser,” Kathleen Monsees, Exalted Ruler of the lodge, informed East County Magazine. “We use the money for veterans’ programs, youth programs, and scholarships.” The Elks offer academic and vocational scholarships, as well as a criminal justice scholarship in honor of a police officer who tackled the gunman in the Granite Hills High School shooting. El Cajon’s Elks Lodge is one of the few places also offering vocational scholarships for adults, not just high school students. The local Elks club recently hosted a law enforcement night to honor police officers and has a Veterans’ Dance planned. Some Elks events, such as an upcoming Halloween dinner dance, are for members only—but the annual Oktoberfest is open to the public, with plenty of fun for families including a free kids’ area with jumping and climbing play equipment. Elks funds also benefit the Ladies Auxiliary for Retarded Citizens (LARC). LARC helps sponsor a job training center and a second center where retarded individuals can participate in self-enrichment projects such as making items or growing vegetables in greenhouses. “There is no funding for this whatsoever,” said LARC president Patty Cody, manning a stuffed animal booth at Oktoberfest. “My philosophy is it’s not the quantity of life, it’s the quality. We provide smiles!” Editor Miriam Raftery’s son was the recipient of state and local Elks scholarships which helped enable him to attend the University of California. Printer-friendly version