Miller Garage Donates Labor To Build New Ravenna Moose Lodge

Written by Karen Miller Thursday, 28 April 2011 12:44

By Diane Smith | staff writer  (Record Courier)
About a dozen years after buying the former Holiday Sands property in Ravenna Township, the Ravenna Moose Lodge broke ground Wednesday for its new assembly hall.
The fraternal organization hopes to open the building, which will be located next to the former Holiday Sands bath house on 5714 S.R. 14 property, in time for the Easter egg hunt planned for next month.
“We hope to have it open by the end of April,” said Gary Miller, lodge junior governor .
The social quarters will have room for a bar, tables, chairs and restrooms. No kitchen facilities are planned, since the lodge will use the existing kitchen in the bath house.
The 50-year-old existing Moose Lodge, on the other end of Ravenna Township on S.R. 59, has been sold to the Rev. Eddie Harris for Upper Room Ministry. The church plans to move into the building in April.
The lodge is home to the Ravenna Moose and the Ravenna Women of the Moose. Together, both clubs have about 1,100 members.
The building project is being made possible because of donations from members and friends of the lodge, Miller said. Miller’s company, Miller Garage Door and Building Division, is donating the labor for the building. Jim Litsinger Construction will be providing the roof and concrete, and local landscaper Deian Longgood is responsible for mowing the front portion of the 120-acre parcel.
The donated labor for the property cut the cost of the project in half, for a total price tag of $100,000 for materials.
The 48- by 50-foot building will include an 8-foot porch facing the lake.
“Its going to be beautiful,” Miller said. “We’re going to be offering camping, fishing, Frisbee and bocce to the members.”
The Moose bought the property in 1999 and has used it for summer events while maintaining its existing lodge.
The lodge is planning an event in September to celebrate the new quarters.
An area Boy Scout troop comes to the property in the summer to maintain the pavilions and facilities there.
With the new social quarters, Miller said, the Moose plans to host bands, car show, craft shows and parties. Its bocce leagues are scheduled to start in May with about 20 teams.
The lodge is planning a bonanza in September to celebrate the new social quarters. The event and the 50/50 drawing, with a maximum prize of $25,000, will be open to the public.