The Explorer. The Monthly Newsletter of Fr.A. Leo Abendschoen Council Grand Knight s Message

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1 The Explorer The Monthly Newsletter of Fr.A. Leo Abendschoen Council Overlea/Rosedale, MD Knights of Columbus May 2016 Grand Knight s Message Brothers, Again you came through when we need help and this time with very short notice. I would like to thank everyone that participated in the reception for Fr. Justin and the officers and membership that gave the ok to do this. Over the past month we presented three bibles to Daniel Schneider s family, Frank Vanik s family and Fr. Justin for his sister. We ask you keep their families in your prayers. We also presented the Altar Severs at Annunciation Church and Saint Clements with a certificate and gift. Again this year we presented a donation to five Seminarians at the Spaghetti Dinner & Bingo. We have several things coming up in the future. The Bull and Oyster Roast will be held in our hall on October 30 th from 1pm to 6pm, more information will follow. Shawn Ruby and I will co-chair this event and Jason will do the ticket sales. Shawn is working on the Council Anniversary gathering. Adam is the chairman of the Tootsie roll Drive. Again we need your help it s Bingo time again and we can use all the help we can get. Many thanks to all of our Brothers and may God bless you, your families and the Knights of Columbus. John E. Gallup, Jr Grand Knight Chaplain s Message Editor s Note: Dear Brother Knights, As most of you have heard by now, Fr. Justin suffered a family tragedy with the untimely and totally unexpected passing of his sister Jeanine C. Ratajczak, on Friday, April 8 th. Rather than dictate a message for this month s bulletin, Fr. Justin simply asks that you all remember his sister in your prayers. Those of you who may be inclined to do so, may also make a contribution to the Lupus Foundation. May her soul, and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Jeanine C. Ratajczak Assistant Chaplain s Message Dear Brother Knights, A visit to the doctor s office is something I prefer to avoid. But recently, I had to make a visit to the doctor s office where something unexpected happened that I am not going to forget. After signing the appointment sheet at the receptionist s desk, I found a seat in the waiting room. I noticed a little girl, about two years of age, who noticed me at the same time. I smiled at her but she ignored me and returned to playing with her toys. I noticed that whenever I looked at her, she was looking at me. Her turn came and she went with her mom to see the doctor. I planned to wave good-bye when she was leaving, if there was an (Continued on Page 2)

2 Assistant Chaplain s Message (Continued from page 1) opportunity. She returned, stood in the middle of the waiting room and stared directly at me with her arms held straight out from her side. She wanted a hug. I did nothing but look at her. After a few seconds, I looked at her mom and she said, You can give her a hug. I turned back to the little girl and she ran across the room into my outstretched arms for a hug that lasted only a few seconds. But what a hug that was, so full of joy! I frequently visit this happy memory, which comes to mind in different ways. In one version, the little girl with the outstretched arms reminds me of the Child Jesus with His arms open wide as they are on the cross. They are open wide, beckoning us to come into His loving embrace. My experience of great joy, in hugging the little girl, also brings great sadness as I think of the mothers and fathers who will never have such an experience from their aborted sons and daughters. A recent figure from Life News indicated that over 58,000,000 abortions have taken place in America since 1973, after the Roe vs. Wade decision that made abortion legal. Mother s day, on May 8 th, is an unhappy day for many mothers who have aborted their child, even when they have other children. Year after year, their pain gets worse as I have learned, working with women and men who come to Project Rachel. We, at Project Rachel, through a healing retreat program and referral services, cooperate with Our Lord as He offers these women and men compassionate healing. The image of the Child Jesus, with outstretched arms offering compassionate healing comes to mind. Pray for these mothers and fathers so that our Lord will touch their hearts with His invitation to be healed. Pray also for our leaders in government that they will have a change of heart and support life from conception to natural death. God bless you, Deacon Frank Upcoming Meetings Officer s Meeting Monday, May 2 nd at 6:30 pm in the Annunciation Board Room General Meetings Mondays, May 9 th & 23 rd at 7:00 pm in the Annunciation parish hall. Upcoming Ceremonials (1 st ) Admission Degree May 17 th Notre Dame Council Baltimore May 19 th Dundalk Council - Dundalk (2 nd ) Formation Degree May 18 th Patapsco Council Catonsville May 19 th Bel Air Council Forest Hill (3 rd ) Knighthood Degree May 6 th Patuxent Council Laurel May 20 th Westminster Council - Westminster Council Programs Sick & Shut-In Please remember Brothers Melvin Bandell, Theodore Gegorek, Frederick Hogarth, Robert Priller, Bob Rogers, John Vaeth, Ed Yeager, and sister Margaret Wyatt in your prayers. If you know of any other brother or sister who is sick or a shut-in, please notify Walt Wankowski at or wwanko@comcast.net The Explorer Published monthly by the Fr. A. Leo Abendschoen Council # of the Knights Of Columbus Meeting on the 2 nd and 4 th Monday at 7:00 pm at the Church of the Annunciation 5212 McCormick Road Baltimore, Maryland Grand Knight: John E. Gallup, Jr gallupj@verizon.net Editor: Walt Wankowski wwanko@comcast.net Chaplain: Fr. Justin Ratajczak, OFM Conv. Assistant Chaplain: Rev. Mr. Frank Zeiler 2

3 Requiescat In Pace It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of another one of our Brother Knights - Franklin Louis Vanik. Frank passed onto his Eternal Reward on April 8 th. Frank had joined the Knights on November 7, 2007 along with his son, Franklin W. Vanik. The younger Frank passed away from complications of Multiple Sclerosis in January of Now father and son are together again in the arms of the Lord. May their souls and all of the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Please Remember for When the Time Comes Whenever a Knight passes on to his Eternal Reward, he is eligible for both a Rosary Call and an Honor Guard. His wife is also eligible for a Rosary call. But, the family of the deceased must request it. Please do not count on the church, the funeral director or anyone reading the newspaper to notify the council. The easiest way to obtain both the Council Rosary Call and/or an Honor Guard is to contact the Grand Knight of the Council. He can relay the request for the Honor Guard to the Navigator of the Assembly. Wish You Were Here! Did you know that you can win money just by coming to a meeting? At each General Membership meeting, we have an Attendance Prize drawing. A number is drawn and that number is matched to a corresponding number on our membership roster. If the person who matches the number drawn is in attendance that night, he wins a cash prize. If he is not present, the amount of the prize builds until we have a winner in attendance. Our attendance prize winner for the March 28th General Meeting would have been Earl Truehart. Our attendance prize winner for the April 11 th meeting would have been Jonathan Potter. And our attendance prize winner for the April 25 th meeting would have been William Edgeworth. Why not try making a meeting once in a while? It could prove profitable. 3 Happy Times The following members of our Council family are celebrating Birthdays in May: 4 - Wayne V. Ciampaglia & Keith L. Madison, Jr. 5 - Anne Dirscherl & Theodore Gegorek 9 - Jonathan Sewell 10 - Alexander J. Franz 12 - Patricia Leppert 19 - William C. Huth 25 - Francis C. Zeiler 26 - Joseph D. Schaum III Anniversaries 7 - William & Patricia Hodges 8 - Matthew & Michele Miklewski 13 - Paul & Dolores Sigwart 16 - Michael & Melissa Witemore 20 - Gilbert & Patricia Leppert 22 - Paul & Mary Ellen Frey 26 - John & Mary Schaefer 29 - David & Joan Fricke 30 - Francis & Darlene Zeiler Have Happy Times you would like to see published? Weddings, Baptisms, Births, Graduations, Promotions, etc? See a birthday or anniversary that s incorrect or not announced? Send them to Walt at wwanko@comcast.net BINGO Our next Monthly Cash Bingo will be held on Saturday, May 7 th at 6:00 pm in the Annunciation parish hall. The $500 Jackpot will be played for 58 numbers or less. As always, we could use additional help both in the Kitchen and on the floor. Even if you ve never done it before, we can show you what needs to be done. The more workers that we get crosstrained, the easier it is to make sure that all of our bases are covered if some member of our crew can t make it on a particular night. Everyone working inside the kitchen should try to report by 4:00 pm. Everyone else needs to report by 5:00 pm or as close to it as possible. The BINGO starts promptly at 6:00 pm and is usually finished by 9:00 pm.

4 1 st Degree Team We are always looking for alternate team members for our 1 st Degree team. People who can fill in for someone when they are ill or cannot attend because of other commitments. These include the six speaking parts and three non-speaking parts. Nothing is more satisfying being a part of the team that actually brings new members into the Order. If you would like to be part of our 1 st Degree team, contact Walt Wankowski at , and we will get your training started. Membership We are now into May and nothing has changed. We are still looking for our first new member of the Fraternal Year. It s hard to believe that we can t find one guy out there who is willing to join the Order. Keep in mind that he doesn t have to belong to Annunication or St. Clement s parishes. He can belong to any parish. The only requirement is that he be a practical Catholic male, 18 years of age or older. We need some new blood in our council. And we can t let ourselves adopt the posture that we ve already talked to every possible candidate who comes to our churches. Please keep looking around for new members. Try talking to ONE practicing Catholic man about joining the Knights of Columbus. Be ready to answer questions about the Knights, talk up the services we render at the parish level, and let them know about our Youth and Family programs. Point out the different activities that we either sponsor ourselves or work on behalf of the church. And always carry a Form 100 and a pen. If you need a Form100, contact Walt Wankowski at Pro-Life Programs Pro-Life Rosary All members are invited to join in on the monthly Rosary for Life which is held on the 3 rd Saturday of the month at 9:00 am at the Beltway Plaza Shopping Center, 7702 Belair Road in Fullerton. This shopping center houses an abortion clinic. The next date for this activity will be Saturday, May 21 st. We hope that we will have good weather and we hope that more of you will consider joining in. Mary Gold Program On the Mother s Day weekend of May 7th and 8th, we will be handing out a small gift to all ladies after each mass at Annunciation Church to say thank you for choosing life. Unlike what other groups have done in the past, we will not be asking for any donations. We need a minimum of one person at each door, so that s at least four volunteers per mass. If you are available to help out, contact Adam Kolb at A Knight with the Birds Our annual Knight with the Birds will be held on Friday, June 17 th at 7:00 pm at Oriole Park at Camden Yards when the Orioles take on the Toronto Blue Jays. The game will be followed by a Fireworks Show. We have reserved 100 Seats in Section 328 of the Upper Deck, behind home plate. Tickets are $17 each and are available for purchase in the Annunciation Parish Hall after all weekend masses through May 22 nd, or call Walt at Tickets MUST be purchased by Wednesday, May 25 th. All proceeds benefit our Pro-Life activities. Church Programs Bull & Oyster Roast Our annual Bull & Oyster Roast to benefit Annunciation Church will be held on Sunday, October 30 th. Volunteers will be needed to set up, run the event and clean up afterward. Full details will be forthcoming. In the meantime, mark your calendar.

5 Vocation Support Program We are pleased to announce that we gave some of the money away. On Saturday, April 2 nd, between our Spaghetti Dinner & Bingo, we gave a check for $500 each to five young men who are studying to be Franciscans - Luis Palacios, Nicholas Rokitka, Patrick Roth, Emanuel Vasconcelos and Emmanuel Wenke. Spaghetti Dinner & Bingo Many thanks to all of you who turned out to help us with the Spaghetti Dinner & Bingo. We served 149 dinners and 152 people stayed to play Bingo. We made $3, Half went to the Walsh Scholarship and half to the Pierce Scholarship. We would like to thank the following for their generous donations to the event: Kenwood Park Apartments F & S Maranto Italian Bakery Professional Touch Caterers Keep in mind that our Council is continuously collecting money for this purpose. If you d like to contribute to the cause, you can place your donations into the transparent acrylic boxes that sit near the doors of Annunciation Church, or contributions can also be sent directly to Walt Wankowski, 5211 McFaul Road, Baltimore, MD Checks should be made payable to Knights of Columbus Youth Programs Box Tops For Education Box Tops for Education may be place in the plastic pouch attached to the council display in the back of Annunciation Church or you may mail them to Jason Karolkowski, 1322 Chapel Hill Drive, Baltimore, MD All box tops collected by our council are donated to St. Clement s School. Fr. A. Leo Abendschoen Council would also like to thank the following: Fr. Justin Ratajczak O.F.M., Conv. Members of Fr. A. Leo Abendschoen Council Parishioners of Church of the Annunciation Paul Castagna The Schleupner Family Ms. Nancy Marie Pierce Michael Witemore Pierce Scholarship We had only one application for the James E. Pierce Memorial Scholarship this year, so the entire $3,000 was sent to St. Clement Mary Hofbauer School to benefit the Karolkowski family. We wish them continued success in the Catholic education of their children. Altar Server Awards Our annual presentation of Altar Servers Awards took place on Sunday, April 10 th at Annunciation and on Sunday, April 17 th at St. Clement s. Each of the Altar Servers at both parishes received a Certificate of Appreciation and a $20 Gift Card for Dairy Queen. Each year we are looking for new and better ways to recognize our Altar Servers and the family members who bring them to church. If you have any ideas on how we might do this, please contact Deputy Grand Knight Wayne Ciampaglia. 5

6 Family of the Month/Year Anyone who has a family in mind that you think would be deserving, please submit them for nomination. And keep in mind that a single person can still be a family; and a childless couple can also be a family. The following factors should be considered: Family Programs Has the family made significant contributions to the Church, community and/or council? Does the family enjoy one another? Does the family share experiences? Does the family communicate openly and honestly? Does the family pray and attend Mass together? We will need the names of the family members, and if there are children, the ages of the children. Please forward all nominations to Walt Wankowski, PGK, 5211 McFaul Road, Baltimore, MD or or at wwanko@comcast.net Breakfast with the Easter Bunny Thanks to all of the Brothers who helped make our Breakfast with the Easter Bunny a great success. We had a good crowd and the weather held up so that we could have the Easter Egg Hunt outside this year. Community Programs Spinning Our Wheels The Rosedale Community Carnival will take place the week of June 20 th thru 25 th, on the grounds of St. Clement Mary Hofbauer Church. Volunteers are needed to man several of the gaming wheels. Reporting time is 6:30 pm. Anyone who can volunteer to help at the carnival should call Jason at or contact him by at jkarolkowski@bcps.org. 6 Operation Welcome Home On Saturday, January 30 th, members of Fr. A. Leo Abendschoen Council, Archbishop Francis P. Keough Assembly, and the Student Council of St. Clement Mary Hofbauer School joined forces to go Bowling for Our Service Men and Women at the Brunswick Perry Hall Lanes. Proceeds would benefit Operation Welcome Home. We had a great turnout and on Monday, April 11 th, checks were presented for a total of $ to representatives of Operation Welcome Home. 4 th Degree News The next meeting of the Archbishop Francis P. Keough Assembly will held on Tuesday, May 10th at 8:00 pm at Columbus Gardens. This will be a regular business meeting. Refreshments will be served at 7:00 pm with the meeting to follow at 8:00 pm. Anyone wishing to run for an Assembly Office for the fraternal year should contact Walt Wankowski immediately. As always, we are looking for 4 th Degree members to join the Color Corps. Any 4 th Degree member who would like to join the Color Corps should contact Walt at

7 District Message Chapter News The following message was delivered by District Deputy Herb Kraft at the April 11th General Meeting: My Brothers, I will be very brief. We have about 80 days left to the end of this fraternal year, and you have a lot of good programs going. This is a strong council. A council that s strong moves. You still need to meet you membership quota; your quota is seven members. So if you know of anyone who is thinking about it, please go back to the gentleman and work on it. For what it s worth, you ve heard of the Circle of Honor. I m sure you ve heard a lot about it from different people. They are about 150 short, so if each council would come up with one new member in the next 80 days, then they will meet their quota. And that s all I have to say about that. Your sister council, St. Vincent Pallotti down in Little Italy, decided to get a statue of Fr. McGivney for the church. It ll be the four foot statue and Ron was there and he heard this conversation, where are we going to put it? And someone said maybe one of them will get lost. It ll cost $2400 and they re going to have a Knight with Elvis, that s Knight with a K, September the 17 th, which gives us plenty of time. It ll be $30 per person and it will be held in Sons of Italy Hall. So if we can get a group together, maybe get a table of 10, with a 20 % reduction, that would be $280, and we would be supporting our sister council and it would be appreciated. If not, I ll just get them to come up here. Finally, let me say that I appreciate the way that everyone in this council has treated me over the years. It has been wonderful. Herb Kraft DD#28 The next meeting of the Baltimore Chapter of Grand Knights on Thursday, May 19 th at 8:00 pm at Holy Trinity Council #3413 in Severna Park. This will be a Business meeting with Nominations for next year s officers. All Knights are invited and encouraged to attend. Insurance News Knights of Columbus Named a 2016 World s Most Ethical Company The Knights of Columbus has been recognized as a 2016 World s Most Ethical Company by the Ethisphere Institute for the third consecutive year. The World s Most Ethical Companies designation recognizes companies that align principle with action and work tirelessly to make trust a part of their corporate structure. Such companies help shape future industry standards by introducing tomorrow s best practices today. The Knights of Columbus is one of only two awardees in the life insurance category, underscoring the Knights commitment to leading ethical business standards and practices. This commitment will continue, as we promise to abide by principles in keeping with Catholic values, particularly through ethical selling, ethical business and ethical investing. Ethical Selling We professionally train our agents and rigorously hold them to the highest ethical standards. When contracted, each agent must sign a Code of Ethics, which is modeled after the Ten Commandments. When signing the code, agents commit to present, honestly and accurately, all the facts necessary to enable a member to make an informed decision. Our fraternal ties to our members, the code states, make it more incumbent on us, in our dealings with them, to assure that their interests are utmost in our minds as we provide solutions to their financial needs. 7

8 Ethical Business The Knights of Columbus is committed to ethical business practices. We firmly believe that these practices have contributed to our business success and helped us to be consistently awarded the highest possible rating for financial strength from ratings agency A.M. Best. We also make guarantees to our members and their families, so they do not have to wonder about the decision to do business with us. We guarantee the cash value in our whole life insurance products. We guarantee the rates on our level term insurance. And we guarantee a minimum interest rate on our retirement annuities. Ethical Investing Our investment strategy is both safe and Catholicbased. We will not purchase junk bonds. We will not purchase derivatives. We will not invest in companies that deal in abortion, contraception, human cloning, embryonic stem cell research, forprofit healthcare that pays for any of the aforementioned, and pornography. The World s Most Ethical Company assessment is based on the Ethisphere Institute s Ethics Quotient (EQ) framework, developed over years of research and vetted and refined by the expert advice from Ethisphere s World s Most Ethical Company Methodology Advisory Panel. The EQ offers a quantitative way to assess a company s performance in an objective, consistent and standardized way. Those that demonstrate leadership in areas like citizenship, integrity and transparency create more value for their investors, communities, customers and employees, thus solidifying a sustainable business advantage, said Ethisphere CEO Timothy Erblich. We are honored that the Ethisphere Institute has again acknowledged our commitment. It is this commitment that makes doing business with the Knights of Columbus truly different. Our Benefits representative is Norman Chuck Teal. And you can reach him at State Council News Yahoo! The Maryland State Council sponsors a communication vehicle at Yahoo.com. Any Knight who has a computer, can sign up for it and it costs you nothing. The State Council would like to get as many Knights as possible to sign up for this valuable electronic media instrument, so that more of you will be able to receive important information in a real-time manner. Among the items regularly passed on via the Yahoo site are notifications of illness and deceased members, upcoming activities at the local, State, and Supreme Level, access to information on State Programs, notifications of upcoming degree ceremonials, announcements from the Supreme Chaplain, etc. To sign up for this service, simply go to and then follow the instructions. Supreme Council News Supreme Knight attends Poland State Convention as Poland celebrates 10 years of the Knights of Columbus Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson and his wife, Dorian, attended the 6th Poland State Convention which took place April 22-24, 2016 in Łomża, Poland. Located northeast of the capital city of Warsaw, Łomża was one of the original six cities where the first Knights of Columbus councils were established in This year s State Convention coincides with the 10th anniversary of the first ceremonial exemplifications that established the Order of the Knights of Columbus in Poland. In total, over 350 delegates, chaplains, wives, and guests, including representatives from Lithuania and Ukraine, were in attendance. 8

9 A Patriotic Degree Color Corps led the Supreme Knight, Mrs. Anderson, and all attendees in Two Important Dates on May procession into the 16th-century Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel for Mass celebrated by His Excellency Mieczysław Mokrzycki of Lviv, Mother s Day will be celebrated on Sunday, Ukraine and concelebrated by nearly 40 council May 8 th. It is a day set aside to chaplains. During Mass, participants performed an honor our mothers. If your mother is Act of Consecration to the Holy Family in the still alive, please spend some time presence of the Order s Holy Family traveling icon. with her and tell her how much she During that evening s banquet, a multimedia has meant to you. If she lives out of presentation led the gathered delegates, wives, and state, then a telephone call is in order. guests through the history of the Knights in Poland, If your mother has passed on to her Eternal Reward, from the very first travels of the Supreme Knight in perhaps visit her gravesite and/or say a prayer for the country to the latest news on the preparations her. for World Youth Day in Kraków. State Officers then gave presentations regarding the dynamic growth and development of the jurisdiction, from the beginnings of the Order s establishment in Poland to the present. Having just been re-elected that afternoon, State Deputy Andrzej Anasiak spoke about the current activities of the Knights, including initiatives across the country and even those undertaken in cooperation with other organizations. He underlined Poland s willingness to provide support and guidance to the neighboring countries where the Order has also established councils, namely Ukraine and Lithuania. During his remarks, the Supreme Knight stressed the importance of Poland s contribution to the Church throughout the tumultuous 20th century. He shared with the audience that the recently dedicated altar at the Luminous Mysteries Chapel at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, DC contains the relics of four Poles St. Albert Chmielowski, St. Faustyna Kowalska, St. Maximilian Kolbe, and St. John Paul II. He said it was not an accident that these modern-day saints came from Poland and that Divine Providence has yet a plan for Poland in the world. Impressed with the development of the Order in Poland where there are now nearly 90 local councils and over 4,200 members, the Supreme Knight also expressed satisfaction that Knights in Poland are now in a position to help brother Knights in Ukraine and Lithuania. 9 Memorial Day will be observed on Monday, May 30 th. The day will be filled with family gatherings, sporting events, shopping, parades, fireworks displays, war movies on television, and overall good camaraderie. And all of that is good. But this is also a special day set aside to honor those who made the supreme sacrifice in the defense of our nation. They are the real reason for this holiday. Please take time to pause and remember them, and maybe participate in a ceremony honoring them. These ceremonies are usually held in the morning hours and there will be plenty to choose from. Articles for the June edition of The Explorer must be received by Monday, May 23rd. Send all inputs to: Walt Wankowski 5211 McFaul Road Baltimore, MD Or by to: wwanko@comcast.net

10 Fr. A. Leo Abendschoen Council Knights of Columbus 5212 McCormick Avenue Baltimore, Maryland Calendar Reminders May 2 Council Officer s Meeting 6:30 pm Board Room May 7 - Monthly Cash Bingo 6:00 pm Annunciation Parish Hall May 8 Mother s Day May 9 - Council General Business Meeting 7:00 pm Annunciation Parish Hall May 10-4 th Degree Assembly Meeting 8:00 pm Columbus Gardens May 19 - Baltimore Chapter of Grand Knights - 8:00 pm Holy Trinity Council Severna Park May 21 - Pro-Life Rosary 9:00 am Beltway Plaza Shopping Center, Fullerton May 23 - Council General Business Meeting 7:00 pm Annunciation Parish Hall May 25 Last Day to buy tickets for A Knight with the Birds May 30 Memorial Day 10