On March 24, 2007 the Arizona Elk Society held its 6th annual banquet resulting in yet another successful banquet. The numbers reflect the incredible amount of effort that so many people put into that one day and night each year. I have had the privilege of working all six banquets and each year I am more impressed with how well the event is handled, how smoothly the whole night seems to go and how the numbers stay so astronomically high.

I had a moment to reflect just prior to the opening of the doors when the general public streams in. Sharon Eichelberger, the QB (stands for quarterback, or queen bee) listed off every committee person’s name and the duties each person had for the evening. I looked at the sea of embroidered backs and started counting. We had over 50 people wearing those shirts. Some organizations are lucky to have 15 people working at their banquets. Not only do we have over twice that many volunteers, many of them have been at the AES annual banquet for all 6 years. The knowledge of what the public wants, the desire to have a successful banquet and the detailed planning has turned this annual event into what I will call the “perfect storm” of banquets.

The months of planning, the endless meetings at the VFW hall and the countless sales calls that all the volunteers make searching for donations are what makes this night so special. I know how hard Sharon and Cookie plan all year for this event, how the date is set one year in advance and how everyone who donates plays such a big part in the success.

I could spout all the great numbers and for those who want to know, we really did net over $342,000 in one night. I could thank the Lord my name is not Steve Clark (rumor has it that he really does have another business to run). I could also thank all the folks who came through the doors and spent their hard earned money helping to support elk and elk habitat.

To all of you, we extend our heartfelt thanks. For once however, I would like to especially thank all who worked that day and night. The list below was obtained from the archives of Sharon Eichelberger and every one of you deserves a great deal of thanks.

By John Koleszar