IAN NEWS JULY 2015 GRAND KNIGHT S REPORT We are embarking on a new fraternal year with a new set of officers. I am honored to be chosen as the Grand Knight of our Council and I look forward to working with our new officers. The officers are listed in the table below. Please introduce yourself to them and get to know them. I would like to personally thank Ray Blust for his tremendous job of leading us over the past two years. I can only hope to bring the same level of intensity to the job as Ray did. My first goal is to continue focusing on the principle of Charity, which Ray has so effectively mapped out for us. We will participate in the charitable activities that we typically do and add a few more to the mix. I also have a strong desire to develop the principle of Fraternity in our Council by getting more of our members involved in activities and coming together for more social events. So, if you have an idea for a new activity or an event please let me know and we will make it happen. Lastly, I hope to focus more of our efforts on the principle of Unity by providing opportunities to learn more about our Catholic faith. If we know our faith, and come together as a group, we will be a powerful force of evangelization in our community. I look forward to continuing to work with those of you whom I already know and I am anxious to get to know any members that I have not met yet. Please pray for me and for the Knights of Columbus. Vivat Jesus! Grand Knight Brian Gordon FOURTH DEGREE At the June meeting Sir Knight Curtis Oliver s name was pulled from the attendance bowl. Since he was not present the bowl will be $ 76.00 for this month. Remember the meeting on July 21, 2015. We had elections for the new fraternal year and I had the privilege of being elected for another term in office as your Navigator. We will have our installation of Officers at the July meeting. All Officers to be in Tuxedo and Social Baldrick. If you don t have a Tux a suit jacket or suit will be accepted. Wives and friends are invited. Social to follow meeting. Our District Master will do the Installation. We had our 50/50 drawing for June. James Hartzell s name was pulled. The money helps to cover the support we give to our seminarian for the year. You can still send in $6.00 and be in for the remainder of the year. I want to welcome eight new members that received their Fourth Degree on June 6, 2015. S. K. Kenneth Stanley, S. K. Patrick Plunkett, S.K. Joseph Bourgo, S.K. Robert Jones, S.K. John Pastorius, S.K. Justin Pastorus, S.K. Jay Bringman, and S.K. Denver Haught. Hope to see all of you at the July 21, 2015 meeting at 7:30 P.M. MEMBERSHIP MATTERS Faithful Navigator Frank Steadman Our final First Degree Exemplification for the 2014/2015 fraternal year was held on June 9 th. Thank you for attending and showing your support. We had four men join our Order. We are delighted to welcome Peter Hartzell (Jamie Hartzell), Zachary Fahey (Tom Fahey), Chad Carter (Joe Bourgo), and Ken Imer (Brian Gordon). Thank you to the sponsors whose names are shown in parentheses. Our new members are shown in the picture below. Please make it a point to welcome them when you see them at the next meeting. 1
We anticipated this being a tough year in terms of meeting our membership quota because of the roster clean-up activities. However, we recruited twelve new members and had several transfers into our Council this past year. These are good results and I am extremely grateful to all of our recruiters. Congratulations to all of our members who sponsored a new or returning member and a heartfelt thank you from your Membership Director goes out to all who helped with the recruitment drives. Continuing on with our frequently asked questions, here are the next ones: What should I do if I change address? You should notify our Financial Secretary (Ken Staley). It s important to keep your address current with the Council as this will affect various mailings. Address changes are processed to Supreme so that any non-council Knights of Columbus mailing lists will also be updated. If you are an insurance member it is also suggested that you contact your Fraternal Benefits Advisor (Mike Bush). Who should I notify regarding sick or distressed members or member deaths? You should contact our Financial Secretary (Ken Staley), who can record and take the appropriate steps. Remember, membership matters because God wants us to take care of our families and live out our faith in love. Brian Gordon, Membership Director 2
CAROL LADIES The Carol Ladies will hold a Garage Sale at the Club on Saturday, July 25, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., "rain or shine." If you have any clean, slightly used items, please drop them off at the Club the week of July 20 th, Monday through Wednesday 1 to 3 p.m., Thursday 3 to 5 p.m., or Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Clothing will not be accepted. If you can help during these hours please call Mary Hamm at 304-233-3954 or Clara White at 304-242-2278. There is no meeting in July. Clara White KNIGHTS ARE PRO-LIFE A new national report from the Associated Press indicates that abortions have dropped 12 percent nationwide and are down in almost every state in the country as more babies are being saved from abortions than ever before. Mark Basich, Pro-Life Director CANDLES AT THE BLESSED MOTHER S SHRINE WK 5TH DAD GRUBLER NANCY JORDEN DEC. DOT SCHMITT DEC. DICK FLEMING DEC. MEMORY OF RON RAY AND JULIE BLUST MATELLA ANV. WK 12 TH KENNY AND JOANNE BURKHART LIV. AND DEC. WAKIM FAMILY BETTY AND LEW NEWMAN III DEC. CYNTHIA AND CHARLES GRUBER DEC. OTTE-WILHELM FAMILY RITA AND JOHN O LEARY DEC. T. HOLLER FAMILY LIV. AND DEC. WK 19 TH CEIL & DUTCH FROHNAPFEL DEC. CARNEY-BYERLY- GRUBER FAMILY NANCY JORDEN DEC. PAT AND CHUCK WAGNER JIM POWELL AND RV BURKE FAM. CHARLES E. AND NANCY KEGELE SR. DEC. WK 26 TH SAM AND IDALE THOMAS HELEN ALTMEYER DEC. JEAN & CHUCK GRIFFITH DEC. MARY J. MOYLE AND SON MICHAEL DEC. PIDGE FLEMING PLEASE CONTACT PHIL EMMERTH AT 304-312-0403 FOR CANDLES AT THE BLESSED MOTHER S SHRINE. 3
MARK YOUR CALENDAR! - UPCOMING EVENTS The regular July meeting will be on July 14 th at 7:30 pm. The meeting will be preceded by a Council family cook-out that starts at 5:00 pm. Installation of Council Officers will take place after the cook-out. There will be no Catechism prior to the July meeting due to the cook-out. The next Catechism session will be held on August 11 th at 6:50 p.m. The topic will be Communism and the Church. The Fourth Degree meeting will be held on July 21 st at 7:30 pm. The July Officer s meeting will be held on July 28 th at 7:00 pm. The regular August meeting will be on August 11 th at 7:30 p.m. OFFICERS FOR FRATERNAL YEAR 2015/16 Grand Knight: Brian Gordon Inside Guard: Bill Buchanon Chaplain: Fr. Tom Gallagher Deputy Grand Knight: Ray Blust Outside Guard: Art Bertol District Deputy: Jason Stahl Chancellor: Joe Bourgo Outside Guard: Joe Markovich Recorder: Adam Schmitt Trustee 1 Year: Chuck Wagner Field Agent/ Michael Bush Treasurer: Ed Novotney Trustee 2 Year: Lew Newman Fraternal Benefits: 304-218-9688 Advocate: Pat Plunkett Trustee 3 Year: Bernie Grubler michael.bush@kofc.org Warden: Patrick Baltzell Financial Secretary: Ken Staley CATECHETICAL CORNER SUPREME COURT DECISION ON MARRIAGE A TRAGIC ERROR SAYS PRESIDENT OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS CONFERENCE June 26, 2015 WASHINGTON The U.S. Supreme Court decision, June 26, interpreting the U.S. Constitution to require all states to license and recognize same-sex marriage is a tragic error that harms the common good and most vulnerable among us, said Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The full statement follows: 4
Regardless of what a narrow majority of the Supreme Court may declare at this moment in history, the nature of the human person and marriage remains unchanged and unchangeable. Just as Roe v. Wade did not settle the question of abortion over forty years ago, Obergefell v. Hodges does not settle the question of marriage today. Neither decision is rooted in the truth, and as a result, both will eventually fail. Today the Court is wrong again. It is profoundly immoral and unjust for the government to declare that two people of the same sex can constitute a marriage. The unique meaning of marriage as the union of one man and one woman is inscribed in our bodies as male and female. The protection of this meaning is a critical dimension of the integral ecology that Pope Francis has called us to promote. Mandating marriage redefinition across the country is a tragic error that harms the common good and most vulnerable among us, especially children. The law has a duty to support every child s basic right to be raised, where possible, by his or her married mother and father in a stable home. Jesus Christ, with great love, taught unambiguously that from the beginning marriage is the lifelong union of one man and one woman. As Catholic bishops, we follow our Lord and will continue to teach and to act according to this truth. I encourage Catholics to move forward with faith, hope, and love: faith in the unchanging truth about marriage, rooted in the immutable nature of the human person and confirmed by divine revelation; hope that these truths will once again prevail in our society, not only by their logic, but by their great beauty and manifest service to the common good; and love for all our neighbors, even those who hate us or would punish us for our faith and moral convictions. Lastly, I call upon all people of good will to join us in proclaiming the goodness, truth, and beauty of marriage as rightly understood for millennia, and I ask all in positions of power and authority to respect the God-given freedom to seek, live by, and bear witness to the truth. HAPPY 4 TH OF JULY Like his predecessor, John Swift, Hart (i.e. Luke Hart, the Supreme Knight from 1953 to 1964) vigorously promoted antisecularist and anti-communist programs. He was particularly proud of the Order s role in amending the Pledge of Allegiance to include under God after the phrase one nation. The movement for the amendment originated in April 1951, when the Supreme Board of Directors adopted a resolution providing that the amended pledge be recited at 5
meetings of the 750 Fourth Degree Assemblies in the United States. Urged by five State Councils Delaware, Florida, Michigan, New York, and South Dakota the Supreme Council of 1952 passed a resolution urging Congress to amend the pledge. Copies of the resolution were sent to the President, the Vice President, and the Speaker of the House. As president of the National Fraternal Congress, Hart successfully urged the 110 fraternal societies to adopt the resolution. Congressman Louis C. Rabaut of Michigan introduced in the House of Representatives a resolution to amend the pledge in the Public Law on April 20, 1953. After sixteen other such resolutions were submitted to Congress, the amended pledge was finally passed and on Flag Day, June 14, 1954, President Eisenhower signed it into law. Later the President wrote to Luke Hart, extending his gratitude to the Knights for their part in the movement to have the words under God added to our Pledge of Allegiance. Patriotism, one of the Order s four cardinal principles, was the predominant motive behind the movement for the amended pledge. (from Faith and Fraternalism, The History of the Knights of Columbus 1882-1982, Christopher J. Kauffman, Harper & Row, New York, 1982, p. 385) SPECIAL KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS PROGRAM Building the Domestic Church The Family Fully Alive The following pages are excerpted from the booklet Building the Domestic Church: The Family Fully Alive which can be found at http://www.kofc.org/un/en/resources/domestic-church/building-domestic-church.pdf. We will provide these monthly themes throughout the coming year. 6
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Sub tuum praesidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genetrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen. We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God; despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen. 9