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Last Sunday the Elks Lodge in Thompson Falls had cookies for children to decorate in order to raise funds for scholarships in Sanders County. Elks Exalted Ruler Charlie Munday said they wanted to come up with an event to help raise money for education. "We created a think tank of people to do that," Munday said. The head of the cookie operation is Nicole Miller, Munday added.

Cookies baked by Beagle's Bakery in Thompson Falls offered a variety of cut-out cookies to be decorated by possible future scholarship recipients, according to Miller. "We didn't have a huge turnout for our first time, maybe a dozen kids," Miller said. Donations for the scholarships were gathered in a basket and cookies were given to be decorated with frosting and sprinkles. One cookie artist, Sage Preston, was happy to show off her decorating talents along with her younger sister, Charlotte Preston. "It was fun!" Sage said while Charlotte enjoyed the frosting on her cookie that happened to be loaded with green frosting and plenty of sprinkles. "This was a lot of fun, I look forward to doing it again," Miller said.

The local lodge awards scholarships to students throughout Sanders County. Three girls and three boys are chosen to be the recipients of $500, $450 and $350 scholarships. "We want to raise that to $1,500, $1,250 and $1,000," Munday said.

"We award the most valuable student and the most improved student. And I want to have scholarships for students who are on an Individual Educational Program, IEP," Miller said. Those students who work hard should be given the same opportunities as other students, she added. That scholarship will be $1,000, Miller said. Other lodge scholarships are for students wanting to go to trade schools. The annual Clark Fork Valley Elks Lodge Trade School Scholarship for $5,000, Munday said, from the Jack Esler foundation out of Wisconsin.

The latest addition to the lodge will be the Antlers memberships for children ages 10 to 21. This program of junior Elks members will be the only one of its kind, Miller said. "It gets the younger children involved in the community making it a better place to live," she added. There is a membership form to fill out and the first 20 who sign up and are accepted will have their membership dues absorbed by the lodge. Concurrent enrollment will have a minimal annual fee, according to Miller.

The lodge's Think Tank has meetings once a month and the next scheduled meeting is on January 18. Only Elks members can attend, but all are welcome, Miller said. All cookies and supplies were provided by Miller's business, Farm Bureau Financial Services of Thompson Falls. Miller's son Jakob Molina helped with the cookie extravaganza. He also played the Grinch, representing the lodge during the Christmas parade.

"Nicole has put a lot of effort into this process. She is a true asset to the lodge," Munday said.