Elks giving blankets for holidays

With the deadline moved back, people now have until Friday to donate to the Havre Elks Blanket Drive.

Blankets can be dropped off at the Elks Club at 321 Second St. or at Western Trailer and Marine Sales at 1865 U.S. Highway 2 East, where Elks Lodge Secretary Brandy Kurtz works.

Kurtz, who is helping coordinate the drive, said she even has blankets in her pickup truck.

The blankets will be given just in time for the holidays and peak cold season to people in need, Kurtz said. Priority will go first to people and organizations that have signed up by Saturday.

Kurtz said the drive will also give Feed My Sheep Soup Kitchen a box of blankets, as well as the Havre City Shelter, Paws Animal Rescue in Chinook and RezQ Dogs in Dodson. The rest will go on a first-come, first-serve basis. Blankets can be picked up Sunday between 3 and 5 p.m. in the Elks Lodge Room.

This was the first year the Elks’ Blanket Drive has happened. Someone from the Havre Elks Lodge Activities Committee brought the idea up, Kurtz said, and members agreed it was a good cause.

People have been generous, Kurtz said.

“It’s been going great,” she said. “We’ve had a great outpour from the community.”

The drive started Nov. 14 and Tuesday was supposed to have been the last day. But, Kurtz said, a few more days will give a chance for more outpouring of support. People have donated new and used blankets, as well as sleeping bags and comforters.