Monday was Friendship Day at the Turtle Back Zoo, an event hosted by 19 Elks Club lodges for the benefit of local special needs schoolchildren. The day was first organized some 35 years ago by Eric Flanagan, a member of the South Orange Elks Handicapped Children's Committee, and students from Clinton and Marshall Schools attended. 

This year more than 1,000 Essex and Union county children, accompanied by teachers, aides, and other chaperones, were offered admission to the zoo, lunch, stuffed animal souvenirs, and warm greetings by dozens of Elks Club members. Every class or group had a souvenir photo taken under a banner in a pavilion; the photos will be sent to school to mark the event. One Elk spent the day undercover: he dressed as a turtle, posing for photos all over the zoo.

The annual event is a collaboration of members and lodges representing both the East Central and North Central districts. Tom Zisa, President of the New Jersey State Elks, which includes 118 lodges and numbers 43,000 members, was on hand at the zoo. He credited the districts involved for their collective commitment to special needs children.

"This day is one of the great things we do," he said. "I give all credit to these lodges. They'll do anything to put a smile on these kids' faces."