Knights of Columbus. Patriots for God and Country. Volume 1, Issue 8 September Continued on page 3

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1 Knights of Columbus Patriots for God and Country Volume 1, Issue 8 September 2013 Next Meeting Saturday, Sept 14th, 2013 Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Michigan Center 9:00 AM 913 Napoleon Rd Michigan Center, MI Inside Masters Rpt 1 Ladies Corner 2 Friar Report 4 Membership 4 Souvenir Book 5 Color Corps 6 Vice Supreme 7 Dist II Meeting 9 Contacts 12 Newsletter Editor: SK Ken Watterson aarrdy@sbcglobal.net Worthy Brother Sir Knights and Ladies of Michigan District II I can hardly believe that as I write this, summer has all but flown by, and soon the leaves will assume their autumn colors and in just a few weeks we will be in Kalamazoo for the Michigan District II 66 th Exemplification of the Fourth Degree. But before summer is just a distant memory I want to share the following with you. Lady Vicki and I had the opportunity to attend the Summer District Deputy Meetings that took place in early July. Our Worthy State Deputy and his team put together a terrific program and training sessions. I took two things away from that meeting however that I would like to share with you in this article. First, as I looked around the meeting room I soon recognized that just about everyone in the room was a Fourth Degree Sir Knight. Yes, the leadership of the Michigan Jurisdiction are for the most part all Sir Knights, including all the State Officers, Directors, and District Deputies and I will wager most of the Council Officers are also Sir Knights. The second thing I took away is the power of the number 1. First point, we as members of the Fourth Degree ARE the leaders of our Blessed Order. A Pastor once told me that the men who are Knights in his Parish are the best Catholics and a true example to the rest of the Parish. As a Fourth Degree Sir Knight that makes you the Best of the Best. Often as I travel around and sit on an airplane, I will be reading my Columbia or working on something pertaining to the Knights, and a conversation will begin with the person next to me, and our conversation comes around to the Knights of Columbus, I often hear, my Grandfather was one of those, or a question comes back, aren t those the men who have those fancy hats, capes and carry swords I see in Church or at a parade? Yes, Worthy Brothers we are the visible arm of the Knights of Columbus, the window that the world views the Knights of Columbus through. As the Best of the Best, the Visible Knights, the leaders of the Knights of Columbus we have a responsibility to our Blessed Order, to insure it continues to live up to the vision of the Venerable Servant of God Michael J. McGivney, by continuing to provide for the needs of those in our Parishes and communities who have fallen on hard times. We must continue to Evangelize to the true Light, and the sanity of Life. But most important as the Leaders of our Order we must set the example by our actions and deeds. Therefore I ask that when in Color you take time to look at first yourself and then at your Brothers who are with you, to insure their Uniform is proper and straight. When in line check the Sir Knight in front of you and see if his Chapeau is on correctly. (If you can see gold braids then ask him to turn his chapeau around as it is on backwards.) Second, do not be in a rush to strip out of your Regalia or as you sit to eat after a function remove your tuxedo jacket, and always remember that the Baldric is to be worn at all times when in uniform. In doing this we will always look good and we will provide a clean and sharp window through which the public can view our Order. My second point is the Power of One at the State District Deputy meeting I was blown away by a very simple fact. Our State Deputy Michael Malinowski shared that over the past Continued on page 3

2 2 Hello Ladies, I guess summer is over, the children are back to school and fall is upon us. So now we prepare for the fall exemplification which will be in Kalamazoo this year on October 26 th. As some of you may know, Father Creagan and Sir Knight Jeffry Cypher are the honorees for our 66 th fall exemplification. The exemplification will be at the St. Augustine Cathedral in Kalamazoo and all the activities will be held there. For those who would like to stay overnight, we have made arrangements at the Best Western in Kalamazoo, 3640 East Cork Street. Since this is a one day exemplification the dress code will be our Sunday best which can be a pant suit, a suit or a nice dress. More information will be given at our September 14 th District meeting at Our Lady of Fatima in Michigan Center. If you cannot come to this meeting and would like more information regarding the exemplification please do not hesitate to call me. At our September 14 th meeting, we will have our usual continental breakfast and I will speak about the October th Hennepin Province meeting and our fall exemplification. Handouts will be given regarding the itinerary and any questions will be answered. After our short meeting, I will have two attorneys speak about the things that we sometimes do not have time for but should, I am one of those people. The two ladies will speak about wills, estates, trusts, veteran benefits, living wills and etc. This is going to be an important talk that I believe we all need to hear. We will also be collecting items again for the veterans, this will be for the Battle Creek hospital. Those items needed are: socks, scarfs, word search puzzles, crossword puzzles, crafts, car models, lap blankets, checkers and checker boards, cards, books or magazines and sweat shirts and tee shirts of various sizes. A special thank you to all the Ladies who contributed to the Veterans collections last year, our hospitalized heroes really appreciated everything. Regarding our Hennepin Province meeting, as in the past we have attended the meeting in Sterling Heights at the Best Western. This is Vice Supreme Master George Dann s last year in this position. Our new Vice Supreme Master is Donald Hall and he is from Steubenville Ohio. Since he is from Ohio, our next provincial meeting may be in Ohio so this is our last hurrah in Michigan. Come say thank you to George and Connie Dann for their four year reign. A final note, I would like to thank the assemblies for all the invitations to your picnics and for the hospitality at all the officer installations. The food was great and the company even greater. As always, please call me with any suggestions or questions you may have. Lady Vicki

3 3 Continued from Page 1 10 years the total membership of the Knights of Columbus in the Michigan Jurisdiction has increased by just one (1) Knight. I thought how can this be? With all the Star and double Star Councils and knowing how many new Knights I personally have recruited. Worthy Brothers and Ladies, death has taken a toll, as has the economy through Knights moving from the Jurisdiction to those who have become suspended due to inability to pay dues. But sadly also there are those who have been suspended because they felt as they were not welcomed. Once they took their First Degree, they were forgotten, and not mentored, not brought into the Council. Worthies that is a leadership failure and as the leaders of the Knights of Columbus, Brother Sir Knights this falls squarely upon our shoulders. We need to ask ourselves what have I done to retain these new Knights and make them feel a part of our Order, and moving forward what do I need to do to help fix this issue. The next thought I had as to the Power of One was what can we do to make this right and to strengthen our Order by as taught in the second Degree by increasing our membership. It was at that moment I had the thought, what if each and every Sir Knight in Michigan District II recruited just one 1 new Knight in the Fraternal year and then took him to his First Degree, and then his first Council meeting, and then took him to a Major Degree where he would learn the lessons for Unity and Fraternity, and then continued to mentor his new Knight and bring him to the Michigan District II 66 th or 67 th Fourth Degree Exemplification. Not only would our District double in size, but our Order here in Michigan would grow by 3500 new Brothers, who would join in being Patriots for our God and Country. This is my challenge to the District for the Fraternal Year, for every Sir Knight to recruit just 1 new Knight, take him to his First, Second and Third Degree and then to the Exemplification of the Fourth Degree prior to May 1, May our Great God Bless each and every one of you and the USA George Walrath Master, Michigan District II Michigan District II Calendar

4 4 Brother Knights and Ladies, Vivat Jesus! September always begins with Labor Day festivities. America s labor unions are credited with the first observances of Labor Day in the late 1800 s. That was a time when there were no child labor laws, workers had few rights and protections, wages were not in keeping with the cost of living, and America s industrial machine was spinning out of control. Some of these very same concerns are what led Fr. Michael J. McGivney to found the Knights of Columbus, knowing that the fraternal benefit of low-cost life insurance was essential to widows and orphans. Catholic men of that time often suffered religious bigotry and could only be hired in at the most dangerous jobs that no one else wanted. The mortality rate of young, working class, Catholic men soared. The Knights were there and will always be there to preserve and protect the lives of those they leave behind. Now, it seems that Labor Day is more about the plight of America s 23,000,000 unemployed, and that doesn t include the vast numbers of those who have given us and left the job hunt after an endless search. The social teaching of the Catholic Church reminds all of us that work is part of our human vocation. Our job is a means to an end, with the purpose being to work toward the common good of all people while providing for ourselves, our families and our future. Michiganders know far better than most Americans what it means to work hard as so many for so long have worked in manufacturing. Sadly, we also know too many stories of those who were laid off, let go or downsized, their factory jobs being sent overseas. Detroit has been taken over, so has General Motors, even my native Flint has an emergency manager. With all this in mind, Labor Day should be more than a last chance for a summer road trip, barbecue or trip to the cottage. Let it be a day of prayer for our cities and state, our nation and its under-utilized workforce, hoping that opportunity for all to pursue the American Dream might be bestowed upon us once more. May God bless you, Fr. Timothy MacDonald Faithful Friar 10, 9, 8, 7..Kalamazoo! The countdown is on. Where should we be in our recruitment process at this point? We should be contacting our Grand Knight s to see what we can do to help recruit 4 th degree Knights from their councils. Would they like a representative from the assembly to participate in their blitz or information meetings? Do they need help contacting potential candidates? Get the Form 4 s processed and candidates voted on at your next meeting. On September 14 th at our District Meeting in Michigan Center we will be doing a poll to measure our success at this point in our campaign. Please have the following data available: Number of Completed Form 4 s Number of definite candidates that are considering application. Number of members and wives that you anticipate attending the exemplification. Good luck with your programs and if you need anything at all, please contact me at or by at meeksgm@acd.net. Fraternally, Gaylend Meeks Membership Director District 2

5 5 Exemption Souvenir Book Ads Fall Exemplification The deadline for our 2013 Fall Exemplification Souvenir Book is just a month away and we are way behind in ad sales! Time for the big push to make the challenge set by our Worthy Master to duplicate the Spring Book. One important clarification that was recently received from Supreme Fraternal Publications are prohibited from accepting advertisements that are directly or indirectly related to the sale of Financial Products and Services other than those offered by the Knights of Columbus. Please keep this in mind as you and your members sell ads. Remember, ad sales are a great and simple fund raiser for your Assembly, as well as an important fund raiser for the District to help defray the costs of holding the Exemplification. If your Assembly sells between $501 and $1,000 in ads, 40% of the sales over $501 are rebated to your Assembly, while the sales over $1,001 receive a rebate of 50%. As an example, if your Assembly sells $2000 in ads, your Assembly would receive a rebate of $700 (40% for the $501 - $1000 sold and 50% for the second $1,000 sold) enough to cover the cost of a couple chalices for your Assembly. So with your Assembly ad, and by contacting your Councils, Parish, local merchants, and Brother Sir Knights with businesses, you can easily make some much needed funds for the operation of your Assembly. Some important reminders Contest - The Sir Knight that sells and submits the most ads (as determined by ad revenue) by the October 5 th deadline will receive a free banquet ticket for himself and his Lady, as well as a free ticket for his Lady to attend the Lady s program. Electronic Submission of Ads - the preferred way to submit ads is electronically. Ads submitted in MS Publisher, Word or PowerPoint formats or as a.pdf file are much cleaner when reproduced in the book and can easily be edited if needed. If you need to submit hard copy ads (including business cards) - please do not staple, fold, or otherwise deface the ad since the scanners used by the printer are very sensitive and pick up markings which require edits (and additional publication costs). All ads and payments must be submitted by October 5th (or sooner if you can). Ad Payments - all payments from advertisers should be made to the Assembly and turned over to the Comptroller for deposit. The Assembly should then issue a check payable to Michigan District II for all the combined ads sold by the Assembly. Front Cover/Color Cover ads if you have a suggestion for the front cover or have an advertiser that would like to purchase the color inside front or back covers, please contact me. The back cover and an inside cover may (I have 2 maybe s, but no confirmation) by available, please contact me if you have an advertiser that may be interested. Patron Ads Patron ads are $10 per name listed in the ad. If you have 15 names listed, that would be a $150 ad, for which your Assembly would get credit toward the rebate. Thank you in advance for all your hard work and support for the Fall Book! Please share your comments, questions, ideas, and suggestions for improvement with me at dabuick45@gmail.com or

6 Color Corps It has been installation of assembly officers season and your district marshals have been busy assisting the Master with color corps certification and installation ceremonies. During the certifications I have noticed quite a range in the color corps from good to needing help. I congratulate those who take pride in their appearance. Their extra effort and attention to details shows. A well maintained chapeau, wrinkle free cape and well shined shoes go far in making a good impression. The simple drill movements and manual of the sword sometimes took a refresher demonstration to get everyone on the right track. This should just take practice. The procession in and recession out of church in some cases varied from the standard set in the training four years ago. We were trying to establish uniformity throughout Michigan District II. Even if your assembly color corps is perfect in their performance but does not follow the Michigan District II standard we are not meeting our goal of uniformity throughout the district. The color corps training from four years ago is available on the Michigan District II web site ( At the web site select Resources at the top of the home page. In the center of the page select Training. On the right side of the page select Boot Camp 101 and follow through the Power Point presentation. Do not hesitate to ask a marshal for help. We are here to assist you, and a number of assemblies have taken advantage of this. With drill manual in hand and ready to help, Bill Currie Senior Marshal 6 Hats, Sweat s, Golf Shirts, Jacket s, etc.. "we also sell women's blouses" SK Paul and Lady Sharon Dorland dorland.paul@gmail.com We sell several styles and colors of golf shirts plus the light blue cotton shirts.. In addition we carry sweaters in various colors. They all have the double emblem on the front. We sell them at various functions and the proceeds go to District 2. Sweatshirts in many sizes and colors.. Gibson s Traditional Tuxedo & Accessories See us for a Tuxedo, Shirts, Bow Tie, Links & Studs, Cummerbunds, Suspenders, White Gloves and White Dinner Jackets. Perfect gifts for Birthday, Anniversary or Christmas! SK Dave Gibson & Lady Cheryl 4431 Cedar Lane Muskegon, Mi cell wdgibson2@comcast.net

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9 Saturday, September 14, 2012 Michigan District II Assembly Meeting 9:00 am Start Time Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Michigan Center 9 Our District Meeting will begin promptly at 9:00am. If you have not had your picture taken yet this year, Navigators, Comptrollers and Commanders should arrive early (8:30ish) to have your picture taken for our District Directory, if it was not taken at our July picnic. Those we do not get taken before the meeting and your Ladies, we will take following the meeting. Again this year we will have a nice lunch provided by Sir Knight Chuck DeBoe and his team and I have promised Lady Vicki that we would be walking out of the Church no later than 12:00pm. (To assist with the cost of the lunch please plan on a donation of $5.00 per person) In order that we can hit this timeline and still insure everyone has all the information they need to be successful this fall, much of the information that will be needed is in this newsletter and/or on the District Website ( and thus will just be reviewed at the District Meeting; however, there are some items that will be discussed only at the District Meeting. For those who arrive early we will have coffee and some munchies. The Sir Knights will meet in the Gym and the Ladies in the Parish Center. (Lady Vicki has an informative and interesting program put together for this meeting so I encourage all the Ladies to attend) As a reminder attendance at the District Meetings is required for all Navigators, Chair Officers including the Comptrollers and the Commanders other members are also are also strongly encouraged to attend. (There will be a breakout session for the Comptrollers and Commanders as we did last year. Commanders should bring their Swords, Sword Baldric, and Chapeau.) (If Commanders have questions they would like addressed please them to our Senior Marshal Sir Knight Bill Currie at curriewmm@aol.com prior to the meeting and if Comptrollers have questions they may send them to the District Comptroller Former Master Bob Vandesteene Jr at bobvan54@juno.com. ) Directions to Our Lady of Fatima From the North, East, West Take I-94 to Exit 142 (Route 127 South) to Exit 38 to Page Avenue. Take Page Ave East (left off the exit) to 5 th Avenue (Traffic Light) Make Right onto 5 th Avenue and then go over Railroad Tracks to Traffic Light and make a left onto Broad Street. Keep to the Right onto Napoleon Road follow Napoleon Road to Our Lady of Fatima on the Right (Be careful as you make the turn onto Broad the speed limit is 25 mph and it is watched!) From the South Take Route 127 North to Exit 38 to Page Avenue. Take Page Ave East (right off the exit) to 5 th Avenue (Traffic Light) Make Right onto 5 th Avenue and then go over Railroad Tracks to Traffic Light and make a left onto Broad Street. Keep to the Right onto Napoleon Road follow Napoleon Road to Our Lady of Fatima on the Right (Be careful as you make the turn onto Broad the speed limit is 25 mph and it is watched!) Or just use your GPS to 913 Napoleon Rd Michigan Center, MI (517) See you on Saturday September 14th

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12 Michigan District II 7045 Country View Jackson, Mi Knights of Columbus Hennepin Province This Newsletter is published to our Website at by the 1st week of every odd Month. Please contact SK Ken Watterson at if you have any problems. Contact Information Membership: Souvenir Books: VAVS Program : Color Corps: Newsletter & Website: Sir Knight Gayland Meeks at or meeksgm@acd.net Sir Knight David Buick at or dabuick45@gmail.com Sir Knight Gus Groat at or jngroat@gmail.com Sir Knight Bill Currie at or curriewmm@aol.com Sir Knight Ken Watterson at aarrdy@sbcglobal.net For all other questions: > after addressing them with your Faithful Navigator < Master, Sir Knight George Walrath or george.walrath@saint-gobain.com (Please remember the Chain of Command and check with your Assembly contacts first.) Our NEXT District Meeting will be on September 14th 9:00 am Start Time Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Michigan Center