MOSES LAKE — Four Moses Lake youths will advance in the Elks Hoop Shoot thanks to their free throw skills. 

Fabian Vargas, Preston Groth, Linden Wiltbank and Brinly Wiltbank emerged the champions in their divisions in the competition held Saturday at Frontier Middle School, according to an email from Debbie Doran-Martinez, a member of the new Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks Lodge that formed in November in Moses Lake. 

Saturday’s hoops shoot included boys in the 8-9 years-old and 10-11-years-old age brackets and girls 10-11 and 12-13 years old, according to Doran-Martinez. Those winners will move on to the district competition Feb. 1, which will also be held at Frontier Middle School, competing against players from Colville, Spokane, Omak, the Tri-Cities, Yakima and Walla Walla. The winners of that event will move on to the state competition in Olympia in February and take their shot for regionals in Nampa, Idaho in March and finally the national competition in Chicago in April. The BPOE pays for lodging, food and transportation for shooters and their families participating in out-of-town events, Doran-Martinez wrote.  

The Elks Hoop Shoot began in Corvallis, Oregon in 1946, according to the Elks’ website. A former president of the national organization noticed that smaller boys were at a disadvantage in regular basketball competitions and decided to organize a free throw contest to even the playing field a little and extend participation to all players. The program went national in 1972 and became a regular part of the national BPOE in 1974, at which time it was expanded to allow girls as well. 

“This is a great program that the Elks offer for youth in our community, and it is only one of many,” Doran-Martinez wrote. “Elks are known for their physical therapy programs for kids where therapists are able to go into the home and provide the needed services without any cost to the families. Elks also have a very robust scholarship program for Most Valuable Student with state and national awards each fall for high school seniors.” 

More information about the BPOE at large is available at elks.org, and about the local lodge by emailing  [email protected]. Anybody interested in helping the new lodge in Moses Lake get rolling is encouraged to reach out. 

“You can be on the ground floor as we develop a new location and customized programming for our community,” Doran-Martinez wrote. 

    A young hopeful takes a free throw at the Elks Hoop Shoot in Moses Lake Saturday. The winners will go on to compete at the district competition in February, also to be held in Moses Lake.