By Julia Train
There was lots of tie-dye, flowers and groovy music at the Elkstock music festival on Saturday, Jan. 20.
The event, a twist on the iconic 1969 Woodstock music festival, was held at Elks Lodge #2563 in Egg Harbor Township and raised funds for The Elks National Foundation (ENF).
As stated on their website, “The mission of the Elks National Foundation is to help Elks build stronger communities. We fulfill this pledge by investing in communities where Elks live and work. We help youth develop lifelong skills, send students to college, meet the needs of today’s veterans, support the charitable work of the state Elks associations, and fund projects that improve the quality of life in local Elks communities.”
Elks are members of the Elks National Foundation, which is a fraternal order. The organization was founded in 1868.
Candy Phister, chaplain and chairperson on the Community Project & Activities and the Elks National Foundation subcommittees, put the event together.
She came up with the music festival when she needed to plan a fundraiser for ENF. Phister said the idea popped into her mind because her daughter, Nikki Davis, is a musician.
Phister first became involved with the Elks Lodge in 2018 when she retired and wanted something to do. So, a friend who was already a member invited her to check it out. She wound up liking it and stayed.
In addition to her duties as chaplain and chairperson on the two subcommittees, Phister also cooks Wednesday night dinners at the lodge. She’s going into her sixth year as an elk.
“It’s a great place to belong if you want to give back to the community,” she said.
After Phister thought of the event, she then got in touch with six bands, who all donated their time for the full day of live music from the ‘60s and ‘70s and classic rock.
“I really enjoyed all the music, all the musicians were terrific,” said Elizabeth Chiola, a member, who sold tickets at the door. She got involved the same way Phister did — a friend she worked with 20 years ago brought her in.
The featured bands included Twisted Livin’, D’Arc Family, the Dead Reckoning, Indelible Groove, Toni Teschner, Nikki Davis, and Jeff Properi.
The lodge was filled with music, excited attendees and Woodstock-themed decor, which was handmade by Phister’s daughter mostly with materials members already had. That way, they spent less money on the event and could put more of the proceeds toward ENF.
“We had a fantastic turn out, a fantastic group of people,” Phister said. “To have that many people and no issues was beyond expectations”
The event wound up selling out, with 200 attendees.
Although Phister hasn’t gotten the numbers yet for how much they raised, it can be estimated the event brought in well over $2,000 by selling 200 or more tickets at $10 a piece and an additional cash bar.
“I saw smiles on everyone’s face the entire evening,” said Chiola.
Julia is a student at Rider University, majoring in multiplatform journalism with a minor in social media strategies. At school, she writes and is news editor for The Rider News and is the News Director for the radio station, producing news updates. She’ll be graduating in the spring. Connect with her on Instagram @juliatrain
