It’s enough of a headline that, in 2008, Warren “Neal” McCoy became the first black person voted in as a member of the Elks Lodge 309, which opened in Colorado Springs in 1895.

It’s even better that McCoy was the first black elected as its exalted ruler, taking office last April as leader of the 925-member lodge on Nevada Avenue, north of Fillmore Street.

Now consider that, as ruler, he initiated contact with Willie Wilson, exalted leader of Elks Lodge 473, founded in 1924 when blacks were denied membership in the whites-only lodge 309. McCoy, who is retired from the Air Force, struck an immediate friendship with Wilson, who is retired Army, and invited the members of the predominantly black 473 lodge to his inaugural ball at the 309.

But McCoy wasn’t satisfied to simply bridge a century of “white” versus “black” Elks lodges in Colorado Springs.

He capped his year as ruler by working with Wilson to arrange the first meeting, this month in the Denver area, between the grand exalted rulers of the two national organizations. The meeting ended more than a century of silence, often punctuated by friction and even lawsuits, between the two groups and could result in a dramatic crossover between the historically segregated groups.

And the funny thing about the story?

Turns out these two color-barrier bashers are from the same hometown in Phenix City, Ala. Heck, they attended the same segregated high school. And their sisters are best friends!

How’s that for a headline?

To understand what made the breakthroughs possible, you need only see the relationship between McCoy and Wilson. Consider their responses when asked about their military backgrounds.

“He was Army,” McCoy said.

“He was Air Force,” Wilson said.

“And I don’t hold it against him,” the two men said simultaneously, laughing heartily at their joke.

Both are modest, especially when talking about the significance of their roles as leaders of the Elks lodges.

“My wife and I came to a birthday party here and enjoyed ourselves so much we asked to join,” McCoy said. “They told me: ‘We’ve never had a black member. There’s a black lodge downtown.’ But I said I wanted to join this lodge.

“One of the men told me: ‘It’s about time this lodge changed.’ Even though they had shot down other blacks who tried to join in the past, they voted to let me in.”

McCoy said it with a smile, noting the lodge had photos in its archives of Ku Klux Klan members in their robes from long ago. He understands and is willing to overlook the history.

“Somewhere along the line, we’ve gotta let the past be past,” McCoy said.

“We’ve got to move forward,” Wilson agreed.

Clearly, McCoy is proud that two-thirds of the 309’s members voted in 2008 to admit him and then made him their leader.

But both would much rather talk about all the good the Elks do, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the poor, elderly and disadvantaged in the Pikes Peak region.

They’d rather praise their members for donating to provide dental assistance, prescription drugs, hearing aids, eyeglasses, prosthetics, meals to the elderly and many other services, as well as Christmas parties and gifts for the city’s poor children and Easter egg hunts and summer picnics.

McCoy notes the members of the 309 donated about $288,000 in 2014. Wilson also praises the 125 members of the 483.

And Wilson is proud the 483 has a diverse membership including whites, Hispanics and women.

But there’s more history to make.

“I look forward to the day we elect a white exalted leader,” Wilson said.

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