Columbia November 2024

Columbia

Students wave paper flowers during the Supreme Council delegation’s Aug. 21 visit to Girlstown, a boarding school for children from impoverished families run by the Sisters of Mary in Biga, Cavite, Philippines. The religious order was founded in 1964 by Venerable Msgr. Aloysius Schwartz, a missionary priest and member of Cardinal Shehan of Baltimore Council 205.

By Cecilia Engbert 21 10 18 24

Journey of Joy

Supreme O cers witness firsthand the evangelizing charity and vibrant growth of the Order in the Philippines.

By Columbia sta

‘These Veterans Are My Brothers’

A North Carolina Knight and Army veteran has dedicated his life to serving God and country.

By Christina Lee Knauss

This Land Was Made for You and Me

One hundred years ago, the K of C Historical Commission honored marginalized racial, civic and religious contributions in American history.

By Maureen Walther

Honoring Our Legacy

Knights in Ontario restore the tombstones of past leaders as they prepare to celebrate the jurisdiction’s 125th anniversary.

3 For the greater glory of God

The extreme poverty and radical charity I witnessed in a Philippine shanty town offered lessons of faith, hope and love.

By Supreme Knight Patrick E. Kelly

4 Learning the faith, living the faith Evangelizing disengaged Catholics starts with helping them rediscover the faith in the depths of their hearts.

By Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William E. Lori

6 Knights of Columbus News College Knights Called to Be ‘Fishers of Men’ • Knights Respond to Devastating Hurricanes • Blessed Michael McGivney Relic Traverses South Texas

8 Building the Domestic Church

A series of columns on family life, leadership and financial stewardship

26 Knights in Action Reports from councils and assemblies, representing Faith in Action

30 Star Councils ON THE COVER Father Matthieu Dauchez, a French-born priest of the Archdiocese of Manila, comforts a resident at a home for abandoned elderly persons.

Membership in the Knights of Columbus is open to men 18 years of age or older who are practical (that is, practicing) Catholics in union with the Holy See. This means that an applicant or member accepts the teaching authority of the Catholic Church on matters of faith and morals, aspires to live in accord with the precepts of the Catholic Church, and is in good standing in the Catholic Church. kofc.org/join

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For God and Country

WHEN BLESSED Michael McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882, he chose two principles — unity and charity — to guide the edgling Order. Fraternity was added as a founding principle three years later. e principle of patriotism was not explicitly introduced, together with the Fourth Degree, until the turn of the century, though it was integral to the Knights’ identity and mission as faithful Catholic citizens from the very beginning. is patriotic identity was no doubt enlightened by the great social teachings of Pope Leo XIII, whose 25-year ponti cate began just two months a er Father McGivney’s ordination in December 1878. In his encyclical Sapientiae Christianae (On Christians as Citizens), published months before Father McGivney’s death in 1890, Leo XIII wrote of “the supernatural love for the Church and the natural love of our own country.” He emphasized that “the essential duty of Christians” is “to love both countries, that of earth below and that of heaven above, yet in such mode that the love of our heavenly surpass the love of our earthly home” (11).

In other words, we are called to be loyal and grateful citizens of our respective nations, while at the same time recognizing a more fundamental citizenship: As disciples of Christ and sons and daughters of the Father, we belong to a kingdom “not of this world” (cf. Jn 18:36). Just as we have an obligation to serve our neighbor and, in some sense, to sacri ce for our country, we have a prior obligation to uphold our faith and the moral order. us, moments before his martyrdom, St. omas More could declare, “I die the king’s good servant, and God’s rst.”

By the time the Knights of Columbus had formally adopted patriotism as its fourth principle, the Order had an international presence, with councils in Québec and Ontario (see page 24). And in 1905, the Knights would expand again, to the Philippines (see page 10), and then to Mexico. As the Order’s membership grew dramatically in the decades that followed, the Knights’ understanding of authentic patriotism was on full display — from the K of C recreation centers during World Wars I and II to the Order’s defense of civic and religious liberty against nativist ideology (see page 21).

St. John Paul II, in a 1995 address to the United Nations, spoke of “the essential di erence between an unhealthy form of nationalism, which teaches contempt for other nations or cultures, and patriotism, which is a proper love of one’s country.” In the same speech, he warned against false understandings of freedom as simply “the absence of tyranny” or “a license to do whatever we like,” with no “reference to the truth about the human person.”

True freedom, like true patriotism, is grounded in the universal moral law and the common good. is understanding informs the Knights’ public policy e orts in defense of the most vulnerable as well as its charitable work around the world. As faithful servants of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Knights work to spread his kingdom on earth and to follow his great commandment of charity (cf. Jn 13:34). In this way, the Order’s Catholic identity does not contradict, but rather strengthens, an authentic love for country and the freedom of all. ✢

Alton J. Pelowski, Editor

Featured Resource: Sons in the Son

Knights are invited to rediscover their identity as sons of God and sons of Mary by participating in a 40-day consecration to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Based on a new booklet titled Sons in the Son by Father Innocent Montgomery, CFR, and Father Angelus Montgomery, CFR, this journey consists of brief, daily reflections available in video or audio format, as well as written commentary. The first 40-day period will culminate with an act of consecration on the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Dec. 12. For more details, visit kofc.org/sons.

Columbia

PUBLISHER

Knights of Columbus

SUPREME OFFICERS

Patrick E. Kelly

Supreme Knight

Most Rev. William E. Lori, S.T.D.

Supreme Chaplain

Arthur L. Peters

Deputy Supreme Knight

John A. Marrella

Supreme Secretary

Ronald F. Schwarz

Supreme Treasurer

John A. Marrella

Supreme Advocate

EDITORIAL

Alton J. Pelowski

Editor

Cecilia Hadley

Editorial Director

Andrew J. Matt

Managing Editor

Elisha Valladares-Cormier

Associate Editor

Paul Haring

Manager of Photography

Cecilia Engbert Content Producer

Blessed Michael McGivney (1852-90) – Apostle to the Young, Protector of Christian Family Life and Founder of the Knights of Columbus, Intercede for Us.

HOW TO REACH US

COLUMBIA

1 Columbus Plaza New Haven, CT 06510-3326 columbia@kofc.org kofc.org/columbia

ADDRESS CHANGES

203-752-4210, option #3 addresschange@kofc.org

COLUMBIA INQUIRIES

203-752-4398

K OF C CUSTOMER SERVICE 1-800-380-9995

‘Beyond the Peripheries’

The extreme poverty and radical charity I witnessed in a Philippine shanty town offered lessons of faith, hope and love

By Supreme Knight Patrick E. Kelly

THIS PAST AUGUST, our supreme chaplain, Archbishop William Lori, and I led a small delegation from the Supreme Council on an official visit to the Philippines. It was wonderful to be there with many of our more than 560,000 brother Knights in the Philippines and to see the inspiring work that they are doing for the good of the Order, the Church and society.

One experience that especially stood out was the day we spent with the ANAKTulay Ng Kabataan Foundation, an organization dedicated to serving the vulnerable, the elderly, the hungry and especially the neglected street children of Metro Manila. The foundation is led by Father Matthieu Dauchez, a French-born priest of the Archdiocese of Manila.

The day started with Mass, offered by Archbishop Lori at a facility for the forgotten elderly. From there, Father Matthieu guided us into a large shanty town built on what amounts to an enormous garbage dump. Ironically named “Aroma” for the overpowering smell, it is a place that thousands of men, women and children call home; they survive by scavenging. It’s impossible to describe, but Father Matthieu came close when he called it “beyond the peripheries.”

In this seemingly hopeless slum, ANAK-Tnk operates a day care center for young children — a heartwarming oasis in the middle of heartbreaking poverty. The foundation also feeds rescued street children and gives them basic schooling to prepare them for the possibility of formal education.

These children come from the most difficult circumstances imaginable. They have been utterly abandoned. They carry the not-always-hidden wounds that come from rejection and a life on the streets amid crime, drugs, abuse and prostitution. Yet, I will never forget the joyful smiles on their faces. All the children we met that day wanted to

shake our hands or to get a blessing from Archbishop Lori.

Father Matthieu and his team of dedicated staff and volunteers provide assistance for their material needs. But this alone is not enough. The most important thing, he insists, is to heal the inner wounds, to address their spiritual suffering. Healing, he told us, comes when they begin to realize — perhaps for the first time in their lives — that they are accepted and loved.

Tulay Ng Kabataan in Tagalog means “A Bridge for the Children.” And that is exactly what Father Matthieu and his heroic co-workers offer — a bridge to a new life. Their answer to suffering is love, compassion, mercy — and the face of Christ. Please pray for them and their invaluable ministry.

Very few of us are called to this kind of radical outreach. But as Christians — and especially as Knights — we are all called to lives of charity, accompanying the vulnerable whom the Lord has put in our path and bringing hope in the midst of darkness. In the words of Mother Teresa, “Not all of us can do great things, but we can do small things with great love.”

In a general audience last month, Pope Francis warned against the illusion that material wealth can fulfill our need for happiness and meaning. “True wealth,” he said, “is to be looked upon with love by the Lord and … to love each other by making our life a gift.”

The Holy Father added, “Jesus invites us to risk, to ‘risk love’ … making ourselves attentive to those who are in need and sharing our possessions, not just things, but what we are: our talents, our friendship, our time.”

These are the gifts that we all can share to bring healing to the wounded. This is as true in our own families and communities as it is amid the refuse heaps of Metro Manila.

Vivat Jesus!

Very few of us are called to this kind of radical outreach. But as Christians — and especially as Knights — we are all called to lives of charity, accompanying the vulnerable whom the Lord has put in our path.

Photo by Michael Collopy

Sunken Treasure

Evangelizing disengaged Catholics starts with helping them rediscover the faith in the depths of their hearts

By Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William E. Lori

IN 1708, a warship, the San José , sank in the Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Colombia. Laden with gold, silver and emeralds, the San José was part of a Spanish treasure fleet that came upon British warships. In the ensuing battle, the San José erupted in flames. As the mighty ship sank, some 600 souls, including the captain, were lost.

Just nine years ago, the San José was located by divers and marine archaeologists, with many of its treasures and artifacts still intact. Since then, efforts have begun to bring those treasures — estimated to be worth about $20 billion today — to the surface.

We can only imagine the work it took to locate the wreckage and identify the lost ship, and the expertise it will take to retrieve its treasures from the depths. While divers will play a critical role, they cannot accomplish this feat without the scholarly and technical assistance of many others, not to mention financial backing.

At this point you may be saying, “That’s interesting, but what’s the point?” Well, here it is. My greatest preoccupation, the sure subject of my daily prayer, is the large number of Catholics who either practice their faith without any real engagement or have stopped practicing their faith altogether. Many have abandoned any real belief in God and substitute belief in misguided secular values for the faith they received in baptism.

Their lost faith is like a sunken treasure. It is deeply buried in the human heart, far below the surface under layers of silt. How did it get there? Perhaps it sank due to the inattentiveness or infidelity of captains and crew members aboard the barque of Peter, the Church. Perhaps it was a casualty of ideological wars. When religious faith becomes the servant of ideologies of either the right or the left, confusion results in

minds and hearts. Faith is also lost because of bad example, trauma in the family, the distractions and anxieties of life, and the attraction of sin, especially habitual sin.

Many don’t realize the value of the treasure they lost. Maybe they never knew the beauty and wonder of God’s love or never really encountered Christ in a deeply personal way. Still less do they realize how close the Lord is in Scripture and the sacraments. To evangelize is to help others rediscover the joy of the Gospel, the joy of sharing the faith with others in the communion of the Church.

So perhaps the first challenge in evangelizing is convincing the unchurched and the barely churched that their faith is worth retrieving. If, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, they agree, then it’s a matter of plunging into the deep waters of their heart and soul, where the Holy Spirit will help them to find the sunken treasure of faith and bring it to the surface. Only in the clear light of day does the truth, beauty and goodness of the faith shine forth.

What does this mean for us as the Knights of Columbus? It surely points toward the Cor initiative — prayer and formation that help us, with fraternal support and friendship, to take that deep dive into our hearts where treasures of faith lay hidden. Just as it takes many divers to find a sunken ship and its treasures, so too it takes fraternity and friendship to plunge into the deep waters of the heart. And just as the divers depend on a support team, so too the Knights of Columbus offers the support we need through its principles of charity, unity and fraternity and through a variety of resources. In this way, Cor provides a practical way to help those practicing the faith to go deeper and those whose faith is buried to rediscover it. The treasure field is vast! Let us put out into the deep! ✢

Many don’t realize the value of the treasure they lost. ... Perhaps the first challenge in evangelizing is convincing the unchurched and the barely churched that their faith is worth retrieving.

Supreme Chaplain’s Challenge

A monthly reflection and practical challenge from Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William E. Lori

“For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.” (Gospel for Nov. 10, Mk 12:44)

The lowly widow received praise from Jesus because her gift came from her substance and not her abundance. There is much to be said for the “give until it hurts” approach to charity. We ought to give sacrificially, and it is not much of a sacrifice to give away things we don’t use or money we won’t miss. Remembering what Jesus gave us should challenge us to greater sacrifice for others.

Challenge: This month, I challenge you to prayerfully examine your level of giving, both of your treasure and your time, and consider whether you are giving as much as Christ asks of you.

Find accompanying reflection questions at kofc.org/monthlychallenge

Catholic Man of the Month

Servant of God

Columba O’Neill (1848–1923)

AT AGE 14, John O’Neill set off from home as a traveling shoemaker in search of God’s will. After more than 12 years of working with soles, O’Neill discovered his calling as a Holy Cross brother, and he spent the rest of his life ministering to souls.

O’Neill was born into an Irish coal-mining family in Pennsylvania on Nov. 5, 1848. He had severely deformed feet and was not expected to live long, but with the help of his mother and four older siblings, he learned to walk with a shuffling gait. He left home at the outset of the Civil War, and feeling called to religious life, he worked as an itinerant cobbler while attending daily Mass and spending hours in prayer. Rejected by a Franciscan community in California, O’Neill heard about the Congregation of Holy Cross and made his way to Indiana, where he was accepted as a postulant at the University of Notre Dame. He took the religious name Columba and made final vows two years later, in 1876.

Brother Columba ministered nine years at an orphanage before opening a

shoe shop at Notre Dame that doubled as an office of spiritual direction. He had a special devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and distributed countless Sacred Heart badges and prayer cards to visitors. People soon began reporting miracles they said resulted from asking Brother Columba for prayers. Letters with intentions poured in — more than 10,000 over the years — and in response, Brother Columba prayed as many as 60 novenas at a time, always crediting any divine intervention to the Sacred Heart and to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Brother Columba O’Neill died from influenza at age 75 on Nov. 20, 1923. His cause for canonization was opened in 2022. ✢

Liturgical Calendar Holy Father’s Monthly Prayer Intention

Nov. 1 All Saints

Nov. 2 The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)

Nov. 4 St. Charles Borromeo, Bishop Nov. 9 The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

Nov. 11 St. Martin of Tours, Bishop

Nov. 12 St. Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr

Nov. 13 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (USA)

Nov. 21 The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Nov. 22 St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr

Nov. 24 Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

Nov. 30 St. Andrew, Apostle

We pray that all parents who mourn the loss of a son or daughter find support in their community and receive peace and consolation from the Holy Spirit.

College Knights Called to Be ‘Fishers of Men’

APPROXIMATELY 200 representatives from 70 college councils across North America met in New Haven, Connecticut, for prayer, leadership training and fraternity during the 59th annual College Councils Conference Oct. 4-6. This year’s theme, “Fishers of Men,” invited the Knights to discern how they are being called to evangelize on campus and beyond.

e conference opened Friday, Oct. 4, with welcome events and continued the next day with breakout sessions, panel discussions about campus engagement, religious freedom and more, and presentations from K of C leaders, including Deputy Supreme Knight Arthur Peters. On Saturday a ernoon, the Knights gathered at the Order’s birthplace, St. Mary’s Church.

ey participated in Eucharistic adoration, had an opportunity for confession, and recited together a prayer of consecration to St. Joseph before a vigil Mass celebrated by Bishop Earl Fernandes of Columbus, Ohio.

“We need new missionaries, new apostles of God’s love to transform our society,” Bishop Fernandes said in his homily. “You are soldiers of Christ in his army, ready to transform our world and our civilization — not by violence, but by the one real power in this world, and that is the power of love.”

The bishop expanded on the theme of missionary discipleship in his keynote address at the awards banquet later that evening, urging students to become “spiritual entrepreneurs” to win souls for Christ.

“The first characteristic of an entrepreneur is that he has a vision,” Bishop Fernandes said. “Our vision is principally given to us by Jesus Christ in the New Testament to go and make disciples of all the nations.”

In his remarks, Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly asked the college Knights to prioritize four things in the coming school year: faith, brotherhood, accountability and action.

“Your vocation now is a vocation of service through your council to others on campus,” the supreme knight said.

“You have so much to offer the other men on your campus; don’t hesitate to invite them to join you and do it through friendship.”

Acknowledging that many college Knights face antagonism because of their faith, the supreme knight encouraged them to be Catholic gentlemen of integrity and honor.

“The Evil One wants you to think that you are alone, maybe that your council is alone, but you’re not alone,” Supreme Knight Kelly said. “You have the Church; you have us; you have each other.”

Students at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio experienced some of that antagonism when they established a Knights of Columbus council in 2022. Despite resistance from peers, particularly for their pro-life witness, the Knights recruited some 40 members in its first year, organized a Eucharistic procession on campus, and participated in the ASAP (Aid and Support After Pregnancy) program and 40 Days for Life. In recognition of its work, St. Mary’s University Council 18327 received this year’s Outstanding College Council Award at the banquet.

“This award means everything to our council after all the hard work we put in through our first year,” said Stephen Garcia, Council 18327’s grand knight. “I’m coming away from the conference with a renewed drive to create fishers of men in our council.” ✢

Photo by Paul Haring

College Knights, chaplains and other Knights of Columbus leaders gather Oct. 5 with Bishop Earl Fernandes of Columbus, Ohio, Auxiliary Bishop Juan Betancourt of Hartford, Conn., and Supreme Officers after a vigil Mass at St. Mary’s Church in New Haven.

Knights Respond to Devastating Hurricanes

THE STREAM OF PEOPLE arriving at St. Anthony Catholic Church in search of help was constant, even weeks after Hurricane Helene passed through eastern Tennessee in late September. The storm caused severe flooding in Mountain City, where St. Anthony is located, and nearby areas — damaging homes and infrastructure, shutting down businesses, and killing at least 17 people in the region.

“This is one of the poorer communities in Tennessee,” said Ron Carbone, who leads the K of C round table at St. Anthony. “These are people who have nothing, and they’ve lost whatever little they had.”

Thankfully, the stream of trucks arriving with water, food, clothes and more has been constant too — and local Knights have been on hand every day with their pastor and the parish women’s group to unload deliveries, sort items and assist neighbors looking for basic supplies.

Aid has come from many places, including K of C councils in other states and the Supreme Council, which sent three truckloads of water to Tennessee. Through Knights of Columbus Charities Inc., the Supreme Council has also supported relief efforts in Florida — hit by Hurricane Milton as well as Helene — and Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

In North Carolina, where Hurricane Helene killed nearly 100 people, councils in relatively unscathed parts of the state collected water and other supplies and trucked them to a central warehouse, from where they were directed to hard-hit western counties.

Ron Carbone (left) and brother Knights of Mountain City (Tenn.) Round Table prepare food for distribution to community members affected by Hurricane Helene.

North Carolina State Deputy Sergio Miranda thanked his brother Knights, citing in particular St. Margaret Mary Council 13016 in Swannanoa and Father Joseph Maule Council 8923 in Arden, both in western North Carolina.

“These folks are just stepping up,” he said. “There’s a sense of pride just being with these men who are doing all they can to help their fellow parishioners, their fellow brother, their fellow man.”

To support K of C relief e orts, visit kofccharities.org. ✢

Blessed Michael McGivney Relic Traverses South Texas

THOUSANDS OF PARISHIONERS

had the opportunity to venerate a first-class relic of Blessed Michael McGivney as it traveled some 600 miles across southern Texas Sept. 3-7. The Texas State Council organized the pilgrimage through the dioceses of Victoria, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, Laredo and San Antonio, in collaboration with the Supreme Council, to introduce more people to the Knights’ founder and encourage them to ask for his heavenly help.

At each parish the pilgrimage visited, a Fourth Degree honor guard ushered the bone-fragment relic into the church, where parishioners and other visitors gathered for Mass, a rosary and intercessory prayer. Local K of C

councils also held exempli cation ceremonies at each stop, welcoming new Knights into the Order.

State Deputy Ron Alonzo, who accompanied the relic to four of its ve stops, estimated that somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 people visited the relic over the ve-day period.

Father Mark Salas, a former associate state chaplain and chaplain of Our Lady of the Assumption Council 12697 in El Paso, also traveled with the relic.

“If Father McGivney were still around today, he would be happy to go to these ve dioceses and say Mass with them, anoint them, bless them, laugh or cry with them,” said Father Salas. “And that’s exactly what he did, because the saints are [alive] in the eyes of God.” ✢

Knights and their family members venerate a first-class relic of Blessed Michael McGivney after Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle, in San Juan, Texas, on Sept. 5.

The Passionate Commitment of Jesus

By Joseph McInerney

The Gospels describe many scenes where Jesus engages in seemingly reckless behavior. For example, he often confronts the religious authorities with no backup. He says he is Lord of the Sabbath and that he can forgive sins. He overturns the tables of the money changers in the temple. The authorities literally want to kill him — and they get their wish because he admits he is the Messiah.

Why does Jesus run these risks, and what does it have to do with leadership? Well, we know that he does all this to save us. But the Gospels also show us a more immediate cause: Everything Jesus does is driven by his passionate commitment to doing the will of his Father. He tells us of that passion: “I have come to set the world on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism by which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished” (Lk 12:49-50).

Jesus’ passion is fundamental to his leading us back to his Father. He has the passion to face his crucible, and he gives us the Holy Spirit so that we might follow him. It is the Holy Spirit who links the followers of Jesus to him as their leader, enabling those very followers to become leaders who bring others to Christ and his Father, to this very day. ✢ — Joseph McInerney is vice president of leadership and ethics education for the Knights of Columbus.

Grief and Grace

Fathers who mourn the loss of a child can find healing through faith and friendship

By Patrick O’Hearn MISSION OF THE FAMILY

“THY WILL BE DONE,” said Karol Wojtyła Sr. as he stood over the casket of his 26-year-old son, Edmund. He had pronounced these words countless times while praying the Our Father, but, on that day in 1932, they were laden with grief. Praying the Our Father is easy when everything is going our way. But when a child dies, we are faced with a dark night of the soul. We ultimately have two choices: either believe the father of lies, Satan, and doubt God’s providence, or trust the Father, believing that “all things work for good for those who love God” (Rom 8:28).

Karol Wojtyła Sr., the father of St. John Paul II, trusted his heavenly Father, and not for the rst time. Years before losing his eldest son, he had buried his beloved bride, Emilia, and his only daughter, Olga, who lived 16 hours a er birth.

John Paul II would later write of his father’s mourning, “The violence of the blows which had struck him had opened up immense spiritual depths in him; his grief found its outlet in prayer.”

Grief can find many easy outlets — alcohol, isolation, digital distraction — all of which can emotionally strain and damage a man and his marriage. The way of healing is to turn first to Christ, the Wounded Healer, and then to others who can help us our carry our cross.

Yet, after my wife, Amanda, and I experienced the miscarriage of two babies, I wasn’t sure where to turn. Few family members or friends had gone through that kind of loss. I also bought the lie that I

must be “tough and strong” for my wife, which impaired my ability to grieve our children, Thomas and Angelica. So I mourned silently, often shedding tears during my commute, while my wife felt she was grieving alone.

But prayers for healing were soon answered. I met a brother Knight, Bryan Feger, the father of three miscarried babies. We bonded over our shared su ering, and our friendship helped me grow in hope.

Whether one’s child died in the womb or as an adult, whether recently or many years ago, a father’s grief is real. And it’s important that he learn to mourn his child in a healthy way. One way to do this is by connecting with other men who are connected to Christ, and who can help him to pray, “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Mt 6:10). ✢

PATRICK O’HEARN, a husband and father of two children on earth and two in heaven, is a member of St. Dorothy Council 8664 in Lincolnton, N.C. He and Bryan Feger co-authored The Grief of Dads: Support and Hope for Catholic Fathers Navigating Child Loss (Ave Maria Press, 2023).

I have a child with special needs. How can I financially prepare for the future?

By Thomas G. Waters FAMILY FINANCE

On a financial level alone, parents of children with complex medical needs and intellectual disabilities face significant challenges, from covering medical and child care costs to navigating local, state and federal programs. I strongly recommend consulting with a K of C agent, as well as an attorney and accountant who focus on special needs planning and can provide expert advice tailored to your family’s needs.

FOR YOUR MARRIAGE

A comprehensive care plan would likely include life insurance policies and long-term care insurance for both parents, and possibly a special needs trust. Everything should be considered in light of a driving question: How will your child be cared for if he or she outlives you and your spouse, and what do you hope that care will look like? These are difficult scenarios to grapple with, but the earlier parents start these discussions, the better. Know that you’re not alone: According to the 2021-2022 National Survey of Children’s Health, 1 in 5 households in the United States are caring for a child with special needs.

As a member of the Knights of Columbus for more than 35 years, I’ve seen countless brother Knights standing up for the vulnerable and supporting

Marriage Needs Strong Friends

As they strive to faithfully live out their vocation, Catholic spouses cannot go it alone

By Conor Dugan

MARRIAGE IS HARD, and it takes hard work. It inevitably involves pain and suffering. Christians are promised the cross, so we shouldn’t be surprised when the cross finds us in our marital vocations. Yet too often we seem shaken by the crosses of married life.

To admit that we struggle in marriage can seem an admission of defeat, a denigration of the beautiful truth of the Church’s teachings. However, it is key to a genuine life of faith. As the future Pope Benedict XVI once put it, “True believing means looking the whole of reality in the face, unafraid and with an open heart.”

It isn’t enough to be honest and forthright just with oneself. We also need others — friends who share our belief that marriage is for life and worth working at and working at and working at . We need friends who will be there to laugh with us, pray with us, and tell us candidly when we are being big meatheads who need to apologize to our wives. We need

initiatives that aid people with intellectual or physical disabilities. And I’m proud that K of C agents help provide parents peace of mind that their child will be cared for with dignity. Visit kofc.org/familyfinance for more information, including important disclosures. ✢

— Thomas G. Waters is a field performance specialist for the Knights of Columbus and a member of St. Peter Chanel Council 13217 in Roswell, Ga.

friends we can talk to about the warts in our marriage that aren’t obvious from curated social media posts. And we need to share our struggles long before they become a crisis.

So, too, we cannot forget our heavenly friends, the “cloud of witnesses” we read about in Hebrews 12:1. Pray to these friends and ask them to intercede on your behalf. A few names come to mind: St. Joseph and Our Lady, Sts. Joachim and Ann, St. Thomas More, Sts. Louis and Zelie Martin, Blesseds Józef and Wiktoria Ulma. I am sure you can think of others. Read about their lives, and ask them for help.

Friends, on earth and in heaven, are integral to a good marriage. Seek them out. You and your marriage will be stronger because of it. ✢

CONOR B. DUGAN is a husband, father of four, and attorney who lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he is a member of St. Stephen Council 15691.

Journey of JOY

Supreme O cers witness firsthand the evangelizing charity and vibrant growth of the Order in the Philippines

By Columbia sta | Photos by Tamino Petelinšek

Steeped in more than ve centuries of faith, the Philippines is home to the third largest Catholic population on the planet, a er Brazil and Mexico. Per capita, it is also the nation with the greatest number of Knights of Columbus in the world today. e Order has been present in the Philippines since 1905, and its four K of C jurisdictions — Luzon North, Luzon South, Visayas and Mindanao — now include more than a half million Knights in nearly 4,000 councils.

In late August, Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly and Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori made their rst visit to this dynamic Asian archipelago, where they were greeted with generous hospitality by the country’s Knights.

e Supreme Council delegation, which also included Supreme Master Michael McCusker and his wife and the supreme knight’s family, traveled throughout Metro Manila and several surrounding cities Aug. 20-24 before visiting the Cebu City, in the Visayas region, Aug. 25-26. Along the way, they prayed and celebrated Mass at holy sites and visited charitable initiatives serving the most vulnerable, from abandoned children to the elderly.

The delegation also met with Church leaders, including Archbishop Charles Brown, papal nuncio to the Philippines; Cardinal Jose Advincula, archbishop of Manila; Bishop Pablo David of Kalookan, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines; and Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, archbishop emeritus of Manila and pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, who was visiting his home country from Rome.

Speaking to a large national gathering Aug. 24, Supreme Knight Kelly commended Filipino Knights for both their tremendous growth and their wholehearted efforts to live out the founding mission of Blessed Michael McGivney.

“When we launch a new program, you’re always the rst to embrace it. And when it comes to charity, you demonstrate a profoundly moving care for the poor and vulnerable. I saw that rsthand this week,” the supreme knight said. “ roughout the Philippines, councils are caring for their neighbors in many ways. … Filipino Knights are an example of leadership for the rest of the Order.”

Clockwise, from top: Supreme Knight

Patrick Kelly gives a young boy a meal during a parish food distribution sponsored by Santo Niño de Baseco Council 16245 on Aug. 20. Pictured center, in red, is Supreme Director Rene Sarmiento, former deputy of Luzon North. • Supreme Master Michael McCusker (right) greets a resident of Sts. Louis and Zelie Martin Home for Elders, run by the ANAK-Tulay Ng Kabataan Foundation, on Aug. 21. • Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori plays a game with children at one of ANAK-Tnk’s centers in Metro Manila.

MANILA AND PERIPHERIES

In Baseco, a densely populated neighborhood of Metro Manila, the Knights of Santo Niño de Baseco Council 16245 operate a soup kitchen and food distribution program that feeds hundreds of people each week. Filipino Knights gave the Supreme Council delegation an enthusiastic welcome when they arrived to Santo Niño de Baseco Parish on Aug. 20, and the supreme knight and his family worked with the council to serve meals to those in need.

“Seeing our supreme knight serving food and ice cream to the marginalized people together with us was special,” said Reynaldo Valencia, a district deputy in Manila. “It was really great to see our supreme leaders care for the people of Baseco.”

An estimated 250,000 to 1 million children live on the streets in Baseco and other slum regions on the peripheries of Manila. The Order has provided support to several Catholic organizations that serve these children, and the supreme knight, supreme chaplain and supreme master later visited two of them to see their work (see sidebars).

Celebrating Mass for the delegation and local K of C leaders Aug. 22, the feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Cardinal Jose Advincula urged the Knights to be “agents of communion” by imitating Our Lady’s example. “Dear brothers, like Mary our queen and helper, let us also

accompany one another in charity,” he said in his homily.

“Let our acts of devotion to Our Lady flow into acts of charity for one another, especially those who are needy and underprivileged among us.”

Following Mass and a meeting with the cardinal, the delegation paid tribute to the Order’s roots in the Philippines with a visit to Manila Council 1000, the country’s first council. Walking up to its historic hall, the delegation was

From top: Cardinal Jose Advincula, archbishop of Manila, welcomes Archbishop Lori, Supreme Knight Kelly and his family to the archdiocesan chancery before Mass on Aug. 22. • The supreme knight and supreme chaplain stand together with K of C leaders and members of Manila Council 1000 during the Supreme Council delegation’s visit to the council hall.

Serving the Poorest of Manila’s Poor

ON WEDNESDAY, Aug. 21, the Knights of Columbus delegation traveled to two of the most impoverished slums in Metro Manila, areas of the northern Tondo district known as Happyland (from “hapilan,” meaning “smelly garbage” in the Visayan dialect) and Aroma. Here, abandoned children and orphans o en fall prey to forced labor, tra cking and violence.

Among those seeking to protect these vulnerable children is Father Ma hieu Dauchez, a French-born priest of the Archdiocese of Manila who serves as director of the ANAK-Tulay Ng Kabataan (“A bridge for the children”) Foundation. Father Dauchez welcomed the K of C delegation and guided them through the circuitous streets to visit several of the foundation’s centers.

“Happyland is basically the slums of a giant land ll,” the supreme knight recounted. “One hundred thousand people live on top of garbage in small shelters — it’s heartbreaking poverty, gut-wrenching. But at the same time there is so much hope there, because the volunteers of Father Ma hieu’s foundation are doing extraordinary work.”

Since 1998, ANAK-Tnk has provided thousands of abandoned children access to education, nutrition and

protection. They are all cared for in family-like homes, from which they go to school and visit their families whenever possible. ANAK-Tnk also opened centers for abandoned elderly persons in 2017.

Father Dauchez explained that material poverty is not the primary problem.

“When I arrived in 1998, I was sure that if we provided a roof, food, clothes and sent the street children back to the school, everything would be solved,” he said. “But no, we found that the biggest challenge for these children who have been rejected by their own families is for these wounded hearts to be healed, to feel that they are worthy to be loved.”

e joyful faces of the children and smiles of the elderly residents the Supreme Council delegation met a ested to the love and healing at work in the ANAK-Tnk centers.

At the conclusion of the visit, Father Dauchez noted that he was touched by how the delegation interacted with people, accompanying them in their su erings, if only for a moment.

He added: “I asked the supreme knight to ask all the Knights of Columbus in the world to pray for our mission, because if the Lord is with us, we can be sure that the foundation will go on.” ✢

Top: Father Matthieu Dauchez (in white cassock), director of the ANAK-Tulay Ng Kabataan Foundation, speaks to the K of C delegation during their visit to one of the foundation’s day care centers in the Aroma neighborhood of Tondo, Metro Manila, on Aug. 21.

greeted by a corps of drummers. Supreme Knight Kelly met with Grand Knight Santy Morante Jr. in his office, which once belonged to the Servant of God George Willmann, a Jesuit priest and fraternal pioneer who helped the Order spread throughout the Philippines.

“I am so happy to be here at Council 1000 in Manila, the mother council of the entire Philippines,” Supreme Knight Kelly said. “There’s a tremendous spirit and a joy among the men. They really love being Knights, and that is an inspiring thing to witness.”

The next day, Archbishop Lori celebrated Mass at Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, a Chinese parish in Binondo that is home to St. Lorenzo Ruiz Council 7344. In his

homily, he shared how patron saints of the Philippines — St. Rose of Lima, whose feast was being celebrated, as well as St. Lorenzo Ruiz and St. Pedro Calungsod — offer examples of living “on mission.”

“As the largest Catholic fraternal organization in the world, we the Knights are uniquely positioned to help the Church fulfill that mandate which the Lord entrusted to the Church and to all the baptized: to be disciples and to make disciples,” the supreme chaplain said.

e Supreme O cers then visited the headquarters of the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, or KCFAPI, in Intramuros, where they toured a museum dedicated to Father Willmann with Msgr. Pedro “Pepe”

Clockwise, from top left: Supreme Knight Kelly presents a first-class relic of Blessed Michael McGivney to Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, associate state chaplain of Luzon North and chaplain of Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines (KCFAPI), on Aug. 23. • Bishop (now Cardinal-elect) Pablo David of Kalookan, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, speaks with Archbishop Lori. • The supreme knight addresses the more than 1,250 Knights present at the National Dinner in Manila on Aug. 24.

Quitorio, a longtime Knight who serves as postulator of Father Willmann’s cause for canonization. at a ernoon, the delegation and Filipino K of C leaders met with Bishop Pablo David of Kalookan, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, to present him with earnings from a KCFAPI charitable fund that bene ts the bishops’ conference. On Oct. 6, Pope Francis announced that Bishop David would be elevated to the College of Cardinals on Dec. 7.

NATIONAL DINNER

e visit to the Luzon region culminated Aug. 24 in a festive dinner in Manila, a ended by more than 1,250 Filipino Knights from all four jurisdictions. e event featured cultural performances, a preview of a new mini-documentary on Father Willmann, and the screening of a video highlighting a new council formed by Indigenous Knights.

In his keynote address, Supreme Knight Kelly told the Knights, “My message to all of you tonight is very simple: ank you for all you do for the Knights of Columbus and for the Catholic Church. I want to acknowledge the breadth and depth of your work, and the di erence you are making in the lives of others.”

Supreme Director Rene Sarmiento, a former Luzon North deputy, likewise expressed thanks to the Supreme O cers for their visit and their e orts to see in person the challenges and concerns of Filipinos living on the peripheries.

He added, “Our Lord Jesus Christ teaches us … that we are blessed and we should be a blessing to others. It is a gratitude that evangelizes in the spirit of compassion and charity.”

Archbishop Charles Brown, appointed by Pope Francis in September 2020 to serve as his representative to the Philippines, also delivered remarks, commending the Order for its charitable work and, in particular, for efforts to support faithful marriage and family life.

“Everything that you as Knights can do to strengthen marriage is greatly appreciated by me and by the Holy See

The Gift of Girlstown

IT WAS AN impressive sight. As Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly, Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori and Archbishop Charles Brown, the papal nuncio to the Philippines, entered an outdoor auditorium for morning Mass at a Catholic school in Biga, Cavite, on Aug. 24, thousands of girls wearing white and blue uniforms waited for them in perfect, awe-inspiring silence. These were students served by the Sisters of Mary at Girlstown, a boarding school about an hour south of Manila that educates approximately 3,000 girls from impoverished families.

e Sisters of Mary — founded in 1964 by Venerable Msgr. Aloysius Schwartz, a U.S.-born priest and Knight of Columbus who spent nearly his entire priesthood ministering in Asia — currently numbers more than 400 members who serve over 20,000 children worldwide. e religious community and its counterpart, the Brothers of Christ, o er free educational and vocational training to underprivileged children in the Republic of Korea, the Philippines, Latin America and Tanzania. ey also provide medical care for the sick and dying, and shelter for the homeless and helpless.

With Archbishop Lori and Msgr. Pedro Quitorio concelebrating, Archbishop Brown celebrated Mass for the Girlstown students, a er which the girls put on a lively cultural show, with singing and dancing, for their guests.

e supreme knight and supreme chaplain expressed their appreciation to Sister Elena Belarmino, the order’s superior general, and the assembled students and faculty.

“Way back in 2016, Sister Elena came to my o ce in Baltimore, and she told me about the Sisters of Mary and about Boystown and Girlstown,” said Archbishop Lori. “I had no idea. Now I do! I am just so grateful to God to be able to come here today and see all of you.”

Supreme Knight Kelly, applauding the girls for their performances, said, “You’ve really warmed our hearts today. From the bo om of our hearts, thank you so very much!”

For more information about the charitable mission of the Sisters of Mary, visit worldvillages.org. ✢

Top: Archbishop Charles Brown, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, and Supreme Knight Kelly, with his family, visit a classroom at Girlstown, a boarding school managed by the Sisters of Mary in Biga, Cavite.

and by the Holy Father, Pope Francis,” the nuncio said. “How beautiful that is, how wonderful that is, how important that is for the life of the Church, because the family is the domestic church.”

During the event, Supreme Knight Kelly presented Former Supreme Director Jose Reyes Jr. with the St. Michael Award in recognition of his exemplary service to the Knights of Columbus.

A retired justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines and a Knight for more than 40 years, Reyes served as Luzon North Deputy 2015-2019 and supreme director 2016-2022. The award citation, read by Supreme Master McCusker, described Reyes as “a man of great learning and accomplishment,” adding that “he remains a humble disciple of the Lord, placing all of his gifts at the service of God and the Catholic Church, and putting faith and family first.” It further acclaimed Reyes’ efforts to uphold the dignity of the human person, the right to life of the unborn child, and the sacred institutions of marriage and the family.

Accepting the award, Reyes said, “Your appreciation of my modest contribution to the Order is humbling and at the same time inspiring to me and to all of my brother Knights in the Philippines and beyond.” He added, speaking to his brother Filipino Knights, “I share the honor with of all of you, and I pray that you will reach even greater heights of service to God and our country.”

VISITING VISAYAS

For their last days in the Philippines, the K of C delegation traveled to Cebu City in Visayas, where they were welcomed Aug. 25 by Visayas Deputy Odelon Mabutin, Mindanao Deputy Rogelio Tadura and other state officers.

The next day, the supreme knight, his wife, Vanessa, and Archbishop Lori visited the Bidlisiw Foundation —

From top: Archbishop Lori blesses victim-survivors of human trafficking after hearing about their experiences during a visit to the Bidlisiw Foundation office in Mandaue City, Cebu, on Aug. 26. Bidlisiw partners with the Arise Foundation, with which the Knights of Columbus is working to combat human trafficking. • Knights and family members from Visayas and Mindanao fill the Basilica of Sa nto Niño in Cebu City for a Mass celebrated by Supreme Chaplain Lori on Aug. 26.

The Supreme Council delegation and K of C leaders from the Philippines visit the pavilion next to the Basilica of Santo Niño in Cebu City, Visayas, that houses the Magellan Cross. Ferdinand Magellan planted a cross on the site in 1521; the present cross is believed to encase fragments of the original. Pictured, from left, are Mindanao Deputy Rogelio Tadura, Visayas Deputy Odelon Mabutin, Supreme Director Rene Sarmiento, Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly, Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori, Supreme Master Michael McCusker, Luzon North Deputy Pascual Carbero and Luzon South Deputy Danilo Sanchez.

a frontline partner of the Arise Foundation, with which the Supreme Council is working to combat human trafficking in the Philippines. They also spoke and prayed with several young people who survived human trafficking.

In the afternoon, the delegation proceeded to the Basilica of Santo Niño de Cebu, the oldest church in the country, to venerate the miraculous statue of the Holy Infant. Archbishop Lori celebrated a special Mass there for Knights from Visayas and Mindanao, featuring a Fourth Degree honor guard and Knights’ choir.

“Our greatest calling, received in baptism, is to be adopted children of God, sons and daughters of our heavenly Father,” the supreme chaplain said in his homily. “We can acquire many titles in life, but our greatest dignity and greatest calling is to be children of God, those whom the Father loves and cherishes beyond all measure because he sees and loves in us what he sees and loves in Christ.”

A “Fraternal Fiesta” was celebrated that evening in Cebu City, with about 400 guests enjoying a dinner, songs and

cultural performances. Both the supreme knight and supreme chaplain delivered farewell remarks.

“From start to finish, you — the Knights of Columbus and your wives in this beautiful land — have outdone yourselves in your wonderful hospitality. Salamat! Thank you so much,” said Archbishop Lori. “Pope Francis is challenging you and me to move ahead, full speed, with the Church’s mission and not to be discouraged, not to be distracted, not to be stymied by obstacles. Full speed ahead!”

Before the event concluded with benediction and an invocation of Our Lady of Guadalupe, who is patron of both the Knights of Columbus and the Philippines, Supreme Knight Kelly expressed his gratitude for the hospitality and the witness of the Knights of the Philippines one final time.

“Every day that we have been here, Father McGivney has been with us in the spirit of the brotherhood of the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines,” he said. “If ever there was a group of men and their ladies and their families who are ‘on mission,’ it’s you. ank you from the bo om of our hearts.” ✢

‘These Veterans Are MY BROTHERS’

A North Carolina Knight and Army veteran has dedicated his life to serving God and country

By Christina Lee Knauss

Lewis Reid, a member of Bishop William G. Curlin Assembly 3158 in Concord, N.C., gives a patriotic salute in Salisbury National Cemetery Annex after speaking at the funeral of a fellow veteran Oct. 3. Reid, who attends dozens of military funerals a month, has logged more than 25,000 volunteer hours in service to veterans.

As a gentle breeze pushed clouds across a pale blue sky, U.S. Army veteran Lewis Reid stood in front of grieving family members at the Salisbury National Cemetery Annex on a September afternoon. His face solemn, Reid began a speech he’s made thousands of times before, his voice with its distinctive North Carolina lilt offering words of consolation and patriotic pride at the beginning of a military funeral for an Air Force veteran.

“Another veteran has been called to the high command,” Reid said. “He’s gone to meet the greatest commander of all. We come to honor his memory.”

hours that Reid has logged over the past 59 years for the Department of Veterans Affairs and local veterans’ groups, including Rowan County Veterans Honors Guard.

Along with all those hours spent serving veterans, Reid is an active member of St. Joseph Council 12167 in Kannapolis, North Carolina, and Bishop William G. Curlin Assembly 3158 in Concord. In January, the assembly honored him with a Lifetime Patriotic Service Award for his work with veterans, with some Knights driving halfway across the state to attend the ceremony at St. James Church in Concord.

He doesn’t do the work for honors or attention, however; he feels that God has called him to continue serving in this way.

“I’m old enough to retire, but the man upstairs told me not to quit,” Reid said with a smile. “I just love doing this. These veterans are my brothers.”

FROM KANNAPOLIS TO KOREA — AND BACK

Reid was born Aug. 20, 1933, and grew up near Kannapolis, North Carolina. His parents had both African American and Native American heritage — Cherokee on his father’s side and Lumbee, a tribe based in southeastern North Carolina, on his mother’s side. The family was proud of their roots and worked to document their ancestors, including an uncle on his father’s side named John Wallace, who was said to have lived to age 118.

Reid’s life of dedication to the military started when he was drafted into the Army at age 18, immediately after high school, during the Korean War. He was sent to Korea but saw only two weeks of wartime service there before the conflict ended. He was then transferred to Fairbanks, Alaska, where he worked as a radar technician as well as a cook.

“We had to watch the border from there and make sure Russian planes didn’t try to cross the border,” he recalled. “It was the era when we were protecting the United States from [Nikita] Khrushchev and the Soviet Union.”

Reid was raised in a time when there weren’t many Catholics in North Carolina and very few African American Catholics. He attended Protestant churches growing up but was introduced to the Catholic faith in the Army.

“I learned that the Church was teaching what Jesus was really about, and so I took catechism instruction and became Catholic,” he said.

When he left military service in 1956, Reid returned to North Carolina and earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from North Carolina A&T State University, a historically Black college in Greensboro. In 1960, he took part, with other North Carolina A&T students, in the famous lunch counter sit-ins calling for integration at the Woolworth’s in Greensboro.

Photo by Faith Massey

This is a ritual Reid, even at age 91, still performs several times a week, often attending two or three burials a day to memorialize comrades in arms and present burial flags to their loved ones. The ceremonies are one of the most visible elements of more than 25,000 hours of volunteer service

“Back then I kept on thinking God is going to make things different one day,” Reid recalled. “And he started talking to me and has kept on talking to me ever since.”

Reid’s strong faith inspired one of his favorite sayings: “Trust in God, and you’ve got it made!”

When he returned to Kannapolis, Reid started a ending St. Joseph Church and opened his own radio and television repair shop. He also built a house and married his sweetheart, elma — a union that lasted 64 years until her death in 2018. e couple had four children, six grandchildren and several great-grandchildren.

Drawn to the Order’s principles of charity, unity and fraternity, Reid joined the Knights of Columbus in 1993. He rst encountered members while he was in the service, and, as he grew older, he admired the example that Knights set in his community.

“I’d always wanted to be a leader, and these men were leaders,” said Reid, who has held multiple o cer roles in his council and assembly and is an honorary lifetime member of both. “I loved how the Knights helped people, not only here but all over the world. at impressed me and I wanted to be a part of it.”

“He’s a very dedicated man,” said District Deputy Ed Shaver, who belongs to the same council and assembly as Reid and has known him for more than 40 years. “You just ask him to help out, and he’ll do whatever you need him to do.”

A LIFE OF FAITH AND SERVICE

“He can talk to anyone on any level — people love to hear him talk and they request his presence,” McCombs said.

“Everybody knows Mr. Reid.”

Reid’s skill in officiating at military funerals has taken him to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia and other military sites. It’s also given him one of his most treasured memories: serving the December 2023 funeral of 2nd Lt.

Fred Lorenzo Brewer, a Charlotte native who flew with the famed Tuskegee Airmen during World War II and died in a plane crash in Italy in 1944. Brewer’s body went unidentified for nearly 80 years until DNA tests linked him to family members in Charlotte in 2023. When the fallen pilot was returned to North Carolina for burial, Reid was there to help lay him to rest.

Starting in the 1960s, Reid began supplementing the income from his repair shop with a second job as a cook at the VA hospital in Salisbury. at’s where he learned about the needs of his fellow veterans and decided to dedicate his life to helping them. rough his volunteer work at the VA, Reid connected with the Rowan County Veterans Honor Guard, and he was asked to start o ciating at funerals in the early 2000s.

“ ey told me I had a good voice and could talk, so I just started doing this and haven’t stopped,” Reid said. “And I’m not going to stop.”

Reid’s pride in his years of military service is evident. Today, he frequently answers phone calls at his home with “Sergeant Reid!” and will strike a salute when posing for photos.

He’s become a xture at the VA and is beloved by employees from a wide range of departments, said Franklin McCombs, who works with the Center for Development and Civic Engagement at the Salisbury veterans’ hospital and has known Reid for more than 50 years.

“ at meant a lot to me because I’d studied about the Tuskegee Airmen since I was a boy,” Reid said. “Back in those days people would say racist things about the airmen — that because they were Black they couldn’t y. But they ended up being some of the best American pilots in Europe. I was so happy when they asked me to o ciate when they brought that pilot home.”

Shaver, meanwhile, marvels at Reid’s dedication not only to the VA but to his work with the Knights. He recalled many occasions when Reid would serve seven funerals in a week and then turn around and work at Council 12167’s weekly Lenten fish fry.

“Lewis Reid is wholeheartedly and 100 percent what a Knight is supposed to be,” Shaver said.

Being with his fellow Knights strengthens the faith that keeps him going, Reid a rmed. Even at 91, he plans to continue his work both with veterans and in the Order.

Reid recalled a pivotal conversation several years ago with his parish priest, who was present at Salisbury National Cemetery at the same time Reid was o ciating a burial.

“He told me that witnessing the funeral impressed him so much that he couldn’t move from where he was standing,” Reid said. “ at’s when I knew that I can’t quit; this is what my life is about — faith and patriotism.” ✢

CHRISTINA LEE KNAUSS is a reporter for the Catholic News Herald , the newspaper of the Diocese of Charlotte.

Photo courtesy of Lewis Reid

Sgt. Lewis Reid is pictured at Fort Lewis in Washington circa 1954.

This Land Was Made for You and Me

One hundred years ago, the K of C Historical Commission honored marginalized racial, civic and religious contributions in American history

By Maureen Walther

Meta Warrick Fuller had an eye for capturing history. A preeminent African American artist of her day, she moved viewers with her expressive sculptures. Her works included dioramas celebrating African American heritage, for which she became the rst Black woman to receive a U.S. federal art commission.

But on May 2, 1922, Fuller mulled a di erent tribute to Black Americans: a book for the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission. e chairman of the commission, Edward McSweeney, was a friend from across town in Framingham, Massachuse s, and had recently discussed with her a new project called the “Racial Contribution Series.”

Fuller took up her pen and dashed o a le er to another friend, the distinguished W.E.B. Du Bois, co-founder of the NAACP and the rst Black person to earn a doctorate from Harvard University.

“If you are interested in the writing of a history of the contribution of the Negro to America,” she wrote, “will you please communicate with Hon Edward F McSweeney… chairman of the historical committee of the Knights of Columbus.”

Du Bois snapped at the opportunity to write for the K of C Historical Commission and shot o a le er to McSweeney the next day. Du Bois’ resulting book, e Gi of Black Folk: e Negroes in the Making of America, published in 1924, details the numerous ways that African Americans have contributed to the U.S. history and identity.

Two more titles were released that year and accomplished similar goals for other groups facing discrimination. The Jews in the Making of America , by George Cohen, flew in

the face of then-rampant anti-Semitism, while The Germans in the Making of America , by Frederick Franklin Shrader, disputed anti-German prejudices unleashed in the wake of World War I.

e goal of the Racial Contribution Series, McSweeney wrote, was to “give the people of the United States the most direct and unquali ed answer to the wave of racial and religious ostracism which, since the war, has been sweeping over the United States.”

Although no further volumes of the series were ultimately published, this countercultural triptych and other publications of the Historical Commission were representative of the Knights’ bold e orts to combat nativist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s and ’30s. In pursuit of a true patriotism, the Knights of Columbus sought to build greater solidarity among Americans — a solidarity that embraced, rather than suppressed, the country’s growing racial, ethnic and religious diversity.

A century later, the Order’s dedication to religious and civic freedom remains central to its principle of patriotism and its service to God and country.

‘THE

IDEAL OF LIBERTY’

“Edgy” doesn’t begin to describe the boldness of launching the Historical Commission and publishing the Racial Contribution Series in the 1920s. Beneath the glitziness of the “Roaring Twenties,” many Americans continued to sip and serve from a menu of unsavory prejudices.

Record numbers of people had immigrated to the U.S. in the decade before World War I, particularly from southern and eastern Europe. As America emerged from the war, the

Edward McSweeney (left), chairman of the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission from 1921 to 1925, commissioned W.E.B.

Du Bois (right) to write The Gift of Black Folk, one of the volumes in the Racial Contribution Series, published by the Order in 1924.

question of who was an American surfaced — and resurgent nativism eagerly weighed in.

Federal immigration quotas cropped up to pursue a Protestant, English-descendant majority or demographic of power. Top universities and medical schools, including Harvard, adopted admission caps for Jewish Americans. Responding to anti-German sentiment, the governor of Iowa issued the “Babel Proclamation” in 1918, a travesty against the First Amendment that mandated only English could be spoken in every school, public conversation and religious service.

Black Americans had high hopes that their service in World War I would loosen bigotry’s chokehold on American society. But the “Red Summer” of 1919, marked by race riots in dozens of cities and towns, set the tone for the following decade, which saw the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan.

Not even children’s history textbooks were exempt from propaganda based on the “Anglo-Saxon myth,” which both downplayed the merits of the nation’s founding and disparaged racial and religious minorities.

e Knights of Columbus was unwilling to sit out the challenge. At the 1921 Supreme Convention in San Francisco, the Order responded by establishing a commission, under the aegis of the Fourth Degree, that was dedicated to combating the rewriting of American history.

Announced by Supreme Master John Reddin and driven by an A-list cast of experts, the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission would strive “to investigate the facts of history as applicable to our country, to correct historical errors and omissions, to mollify and preserve our national history, to exalt and perpetuate American ideals, and to combat and counteract anti-American propaganda,” McSweeney

explained. “ e guiding principle in the historical program has been the ideal of liberty in government and religion.”

e Historical Commission became one of the most important initiatives ever introduced by the Fourth Degree, which proudly considered the issue within its patriotic purview. Whereas the Order’s Commission on Religious Prejudices took on anti-Catholic bigotry in the presses and the courts, the Historical Commission focused on discriminated groups more broadly.

It helped that the Order’s man on the job, McSweeney, knew rsthand of the actual diversity of the United States, having served as U.S. commissioner of immigration at Ellis Island, from 1893 to 1902. Fiery and vocal, he was not a man who shrank from a challenge.

e commission began by launching independent investigations of history textbooks used in the public schools and colleges. Supreme Master Reddin reported that “Investigators … expressed amazement at the error, concealment and falsi cation of historic facts appearing therein.”

The Knights’ exposé led to changes. “When the people at large awoke to the fact that their children in the schools were being taught a false history of their nation, their protest made itself felt, and the publishing houses responsible for these histories began to act to save themselves,” McSweeney said.

A second initiative, aimed at higher education, solicited and awarded stellar scholarly research related to America’s history and politics, which the commission then shared in free publications, books and addresses. e quality spoke for itself: Among its awardees was Samuel Flagg Bemis, who later went on to receive a Pulitzer Prize.

A group of Jewish children orphaned as a result of World War I pose with U.S. flags after arriving to New York City in 1921. That same year, the Knights of Columbus established its Historical Commission to counter prejudice that was based on a false or one-sided telling of American history.

But something more was needed. As McSweeney vented to Supreme Knight James Flaherty: “ e K.K.K. has created a monster composed of idolatry, superstition, and cruelty, hideous enough to frighten the ignorant and timid.”

Ignorance, the Order knew, could be countered, and the timid could be emboldened if others took a lead.

FLIPPING THE SCRIPT

A er two years of behind-the-scenes dra ing, research, editing and revising, the Historical Commission was ready to launch its nal project: the Racial Contribution Series. e series blazed a trail, not only in what stories it told, but in how and by whom they were told.

“This series is unlike any heretofore published,” McSweeney noted, “since it gives the actual history of racial contributions to the making of the United States, not from the isolated viewpoint of a single race, concerning other races, but from the viewpoint of each race concerning itself.”

e commission originally planned more than half a dozen monographs to highlight the role of di erent immigrant groups, including the Irish, Dutch and Scandinavians. Ultimately, only three were published, all in 1924, shortly before the Historical Commission concluded its work. But those books packed a punch, distilling the Commission’s concerns by concentrating on three groups targeted for discrimination. e Gi of Black Folk by Du Bois proved particularly signi cant. By detailing the numerous ways African Americans have aided and shaped the making of the nation, the book debunked the idea that America’s character, greatness and future grew solely from English culture, religion and o spring.

“America is conglomerate,” Du Bois reasoned in his book. “ is is at once her problem and her glory — perhaps indeed her sole and greatest reason for being.”

Covering everything from the arts to the art of war, from psychology to spirituality, Du Bois’ groundbreaking volume in many ways became a model for both Black history and for the telling of American history. e other books in the series, though wri en by di erent authors, followed in the same vein, serving both as myth-busters and antidotes.

William H. Skaggs, former mayor of Talladega, Alabama, wrote to Du Bois about the book: “It is the most comprehensive and forcible volume you have wri en, and I may add that, I believe, it is the most valuable work you have produced. It is an important contribution to our political history and a timely discussion of the most vital economic and social questions before the American people.”

e Knights of Columbus was proud of the collaboration with Du Bois and of the Racial Contribution Series more generally. Telling American history from a position of diversity was an innovation from which the nation greatly bene ted.

“We are exceedingly fortunate … in being able to a ect the destructive tendencies of the K.K.K. by our historical program,” McSweeney remarked in a December 1922 le er to Supreme Knight Flaherty, expressing his hope that the commission would provide “a permanent accepted contribution to the nation.”

The K of C Historical Commission published three volumes in its Racial Contribution Series, detailing the contributions of African Americans, Jews and Germans in American history.

Flaherty, in turn, hailed the series as “an undoubtedly necessary and important addition to American historiana,” and praised the commission’s work as “one of the outstanding intellectual accomplishments of any organization in America.” e Historical Commission was disbanded in 1925 — having accomplished its original mission and realizing that more books would outstrip the available budget. Its legacy lived on, however: It set a new, ambitious standard for the Order’s responsibility to educate members and the public on important issues, to support scholarship, and to ensure that the past is preserved. For example, the commission inspired the Texas State Council to take up a history initiative of its own in 1923. A decadeslong project led by Carlos Castañeda ensued — an encyclopedic, multivolume series titled Our Catholic Heritage in Texas, which underscored the history and impact of Hispanic Catholics.

In the end, the Historical Commission gave future Knights an example of how to take creative action in protecting civil and religious liberty. Having fought and survived nativist community-organizing and propaganda, the Knights took seriously the power of scholarship and the law when they went on to defend Catholic schools and the rights of parents in the U.S. Supreme Court case Pierce vs. Society of Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary (1925) and — nearly a century later — the right to religious conscience in Li le Sisters of the Poor vs. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (2020).

Still today, as the United States earlier this year marked 60 years since the Civil Rights Act, the legacy of the Knights of Columbus Historical Commission’s groundbreaking work continues to be felt and to inspire. ✢

MAUREEN WALTHER is co-author, with her late husband, Andrew Walther, of The Knights of Columbus: An Illustrated History (2020).

Honoring OUR LEGACY

Knights in Ontario restore the tombstones of past leaders as they prepare to celebrate the jurisdiction’s 125th anniversary

By Cecilia Engbert

On the morning of Aug. 12, Ontario State Deputy Bruce Poulin sat in front of a granite monument, meticulously repainting the faded lettering on a headstone. Marking the grave of Father John J. O’Gorman, a founding member of Ontario’s first Knights of Columbus council, it was the third epitaph Poulin had personally restored in Ottawa’s Notre Dame Cemetery. Each one took about three hours to complete, but Poulin didn’t mind; he was just one Knight honoring another.

Poulin finished his task just in time to join State Chaplain Archbishop Marcel Damphousse of Ottawa-Cornwall and others for a memorial service to pay homage to Father O’Gorman and seven other K of C leaders — including six past state deputies — buried in the historic cemetery. The Ontario State Council refurbished all eight of the Knights’ headstones as part of a series of initiatives to commemorate the jurisdiction’s upcoming 125th anniversary in 2025.

“We are acknowledging the legacy upon which we are building our success today, built on their sacri ce and successes of yesteryear,” State Deputy Poulin a rmed. Writing in the Ontario State Council bulletin, he explained that the restoration was “inspired by love and a sacred memory of our dearly departed” and the responsibility to pray for those who have gone before us. “Especially during the month of November, we are reminded of our duty in this regard.”

worn out and dirty; moss was growing on them and the lettering had all faded. Many of these tombstones date back to the 1920s and ’30s.”

The state council decided to restore the headstones, and a contractor was hired this past summer to power-wash and clean up the monuments and raise or straighten the stones that had become overgrown and buried in dirt and grass.

One thing the contractor would not restore, however, were the faded inscriptions on three of the Knights’ tombstones. So Poulin took matters into his own hands.

The Order’s presence in Ontario began with Ottawa Council 485, chartered Jan. 28, 1900. While investigating the history of Ontario Knights in anticipation of the anniversary, Poulin discovered that more Ontario state deputies are buried in Notre Dame Cemetery than any other site.

“That got my interest going, so I went out to the cemetery to see these tombstones,” Poulin said. “I saw that they were

“I said, ‘OK, somebody’s got to do it.’ So I bought some paint and a paintbrush, and off I went,” he said.

The process, Poulin explained, required sanding and cleaning the lead letters, applying a rust-inhibitive primer, and then carefully applying semigloss black paint with a small paintbrush.

The cemetery is the final resting place of five founding members of Council 485, including its charter grand knight, John Dunne (18601924), and its first chaplain, Father Matthew Whelan (1853-1922).

Dunne, considered the father of the Knights of Columbus in Ontario, was also the first Canadian-born state deputy of what was then the jurisdiction of Canada and Newfoundland.

The other charter council members buried at Notre Dame are Father O’Gorman (1884-1933), a World War I military chaplain who was wounded at the Battle of the Somme and later helped to lead the Order’s Canadian Catholic Army Hut program; Michael J. Gorman (1856-1935), a prominent lawyer in Ottawa and the jurisdiction’s first state deputy; and State Deputy Francis Latchford (1856-1938), a Québec native who moved to Ottawa and later served on the Supreme Court of Ontario. Three more state deputies are buried there, as well: Thomas Brown (1874-1945),

first council.

Philip Phelan (1888-1966) and Yvon Robert (1939-2020).

Knights and guests had the opportunity to honor and pray for these past leaders at the ceremony held on Aug. 12, Blessed Michael McGivney’s birthday. A Fourth Degree honor guard, together with bagpiper Donald MacDonald, past grand knight of Council 485, led attendees from grave to grave; at each tombstone, Poulin shared information about the Knight buried there, and Archbishop Damphousse led a specific prayer for each one.

Michael O’Neill, 86, a Knight for more than 66 years who assisted Poulin with his research, spoke about the distinguished contributions of several of the Knights as well.

O’Neill noted that Council 485 was originally established by members from Montréal. They found a spiritual leader, he said, in Father O’Gorman: “He attracted men of education, men of substance, men of faith, and it made a very successful start for 485.”

The council was independent from a specific parish, but St. Patrick’s Church — elevated to a basilica in 1996 — was particularly instrumental in its history. “For the first 50 years of 485, the grand knights came from St Patrick’s,” he explained.

In 1998, a separate council was chartered at the basilica, with O’Neill as its first grand knight. St. Patrick Basilica Council 12158 and Ottawa Council 485 merged in 2021, becoming St. Patrick’s Basilica Council 485.

O’Neill also helped to establish, and currently serves as president of, the Blessed Michael McGivney Honoris at the basilica, which promotes devotion to the Order’s founder and his cause for canonization.

He was particularly gratified to see the pioneering members of Council 485 remembered and acknowledged.

“It was a lovely ceremony,” O’Neill said, adding, “[Council] 485 has to be honored because of what they did

and what they have done for years and years.”

When Poulin initially reached out to Notre Dame Cemetery for permission to restore the eight tombstones, he discovered a sobering fact: The cemetery did not have a single family contact for any of the deceased K of C leaders.

“Though these past state deputies may have been forgotten through the generations by their families, they are not forgotten by the Knights of Columbus,” Poulin said. “I think that it is very inspiring that their contributions as Catholic men, fathers and husbands made society a better place, and they are acknowledged and appreciated by the Knights today.”

In addition to the Notre Dame Cemetery project, the Ontario State Council has restored several K of C landmarks in the province in recent months. One of these is the Pray for Peace Monument at Dieppe Park in Windsor, which was erected by the Knights in 1967 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Confederation. A rededication ceremony took place at the park Sept. 14, with Knights from across the province participating, including Deputy Supreme Knight Arthur Peters and Associate State Chaplain Bishop Bryan Bayda of the Eparchy of Toronto and Eastern Canada.

A week prior, the Knights also restored the Carhagouha Cross, erected by Knights in 1922 to mark the site of Ontario’s rst Mass, celebrated Aug. 12, 1615, near present-day Lafontaine. e granite monument was cleaned, and a new plaque was installed. On Sept. 7, the Knights held a ceremony and buried a time capsule at the base of the cross that contains, among other things, several 125th anniversary commemorative items blessed by Archbishop Damphousse. ✢

CECILIA ENGBERT is a content producer for the Knights of Columbus Communications Department.

Photo by Patrick Doyle

Above: Bagpiper Donald MacDonald, past grand knight of St. Patrick’s Basilica Council 485, leads a Fourth Degree honor guard through Notre Dame Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario, Aug. 12. • Opposite page: Ontario State Deputy Bruce Poulin refreshes the faded lettering on the grave marker of Father John O’Gorman, a founding member of Ontario’s

New Jersey state o cers, led by State Deputy Raymond Sands (third from right), present an icon of Our Lady, Help of Persecuted Christians to Father Mark Hanna (right) and Father Mina Dimitry of St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church in East Brunswick. The icon, which was featured in the Order’s Pilgrim Icon Program from 2018 to 2021, depicts the Blessed Mother holding her mantle over a group of Christian martyrs from both East and West. A sign of Christian unity and Marian devotion, the image includes one of the 21 Coptic Christians martyred by the Islamic State in Libya in 2015 and whom Pope Francis added to the Roman Martyrology of the Catholic Church in May 2023.

REMEMBERING PAPAL VISIT

Fourth Degree Knights from several New Brunswick assemblies provided an honor guard for a Mass at NotreDame-de-Grâce Church celebrating the 40th anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s visit to Moncton. Archbishop Guy Desrochers of Moncton, state chaplain, celebrated the Mass, which was a ended by New Brunswick state o cers and Knights from the greater Moncton area.

FIRST COMMUNION CELEBRATION

St. Cecilia Council 14368 in DeMo e, Ind., provided an honor guard for the rst Communion Mass at St. Cecilia Catholic Church. A er Mass, Knights presented each of the children with miniature U.S. and Vatican ags.

CRUCIFIX CARE

Each year, Marie a (Ohio) Council 478 holds a work day at St. Mary’s Cemetery to spread mulch and take care of other landscaping projects. is year, the council also renovated the cruci x overlooking the cemetery, which had been

signi cantly damaged by age and weather. e Knights repainted the wooden cross and repaired the resin corpus.

THANK YOU, FATHER

Father Arul Rajan Peter, pastor of St. Teresa of Calcu a Parish and chaplain for Our Lady of Sorrows Council 12113 in Essex, Conn., celebrated the 40th anniversary of his priestly ordination earlier this year. Council 12113 organized a reception for Father Peter in honor of the anniversary, presenting him with a commemorative plaque and a spiritual bouquet.

LEGACY OF FATHER KAPAUN

Father Edward Fox Council 6747 in Christiansburg, Va., organized an event at Holy Spirit Church to honor Father Emil Kapaun, the U.S. Army chaplain who died as a prisoner of war in North Korea in 1951 and whose cause for canonization opened in 1993. James Cogbill, council warden, spoke about Father Kapaun’s life, death and legacy, and the group then participated in a memorial walk of about 1 mile.

Faith

ROAD TO EMMAUS

More than 300 members of Immaculate Conception Parish in Hendersonville, N.C., a ended a two-day retreat organized by Immaculate Conception Council 7184. Noted Catholic author and theology professor Sco Hahn, who is a member of the Knights in Steubenville, Ohio, spoke on cultivating Eucharistic and Marian devotion, among other topics.

Deputy Grand Knight Devin Mages of Cardinal Newman Council 5266 trims the edges of a grassy area in the church’s parking lot at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Stillwater, Okla. Knights from Council 5266 are a mainstay on the Sod Squad, which helps with landscaping projects on the parish’s 6-acre campus nearly every week. The volunteers’ e orts save the parish an estimated $15,000 annually in costs.

RIGHT: Photo by Stephanie Smith

Family

Knights from St. Clare of Assisi Council 9708 in Houston cut down a tree damaged by Hurricane Beryl at the home of a Knight’s widowed sister. The Knights also cleared storm debris for two families who contacted St. Clare of Assisi Catholic Parish to ask for help.

RINGERS RESCUE WIDOWS

About 100 people a ended the 16th Annual Michael J. Barnes Shoes at the Shore event organized by Msgr. James J. Zegers Council 9113 in Marmora, N.J. Participants played either horseshoes or cornhole, raising $5,000 to support the council’s Widows in Need fund, which was started by council member Michael Barnes. Council 9113 established the Shoes at the Shore fundraiser in Barnes’ honor a er his death in 2008.

BETTER THAN INSTANT RAMEN

Four times each school year, members of Our Lady of Mercy Council 3409 in Opelousas, La., prepare hot dogs and hamburgers for students and sta at Louisiana State University Eunice’s Catholic Student Center. Council 3409 has supported the Catholic center for 10 years; in addition to hosting regular meals, the Knights recently donated a new barbecue grill for the center’s use.

KNOWN TO GOD

Pope John Paul XXIII Council 5439 in Howells, Neb., donated $1,000 toward a project to mark more than 80 unrecorded graves at the 130-year-old Sts. Peter and Paul Cemetery. A er agging the gravesites, Knights dug footings and installed permanent markers that read “Here Lies a Soul Known Only to God.”

A MISSION FOR GUATEMALAN FAMILIES

More than 200 people a ended a breakfast hosted by Trinity Council 445 in Beacon, N.Y., to bene t the annual medical mission to Guatemala led by

Franciscan Sister Kathleen Maire. Council 445 has made donations to support her mission for more than 15 years, but this year decided to organize a parish fundraiser to engage more parishioners. e breakfast raised more than $2,700.

BOOSTING CATHOLIC ED

Pope John Paul II Council 1808 in Corydon, Ind., raised more than $21,000 during the council’s annual Frank Ordner Memorial Dinner for St. Joseph School. In 2022, the dinner was renamed in honor of a late council member and past grand knight who established the fundraiser two years earlier.

FOOD DELIVERY

Msgr. Hayes Council 6322 in Placerville, Calif., has supported the U.S. Postal Service’s annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive in Placerville — which bene ts clients of the Food Bank of El Dorado County — for more than 20 years. In that time, Council 6322 has contributed more than 154,000 pounds of food, including more than 6,000 pounds of food this year.

Nemesio Bucaneg of Maria Lanakila Council 15774 in Lahaina, Hawaii, followed by Former Supreme Warden Michael Victorino and other Knights, carry boxes as they help move Sacred Hearts School into a new facility in Kaanapali. After much of the school’s building was destroyed by the wildfires that swept through Lahaina in 2023, classes were held in temporary classrooms, also set up with support from local Knights. Sacred Hearts School will operate in Kaanapali until its campus in Lahaina can be rebuilt.

Knights from Ascension of Our Lord Council 8235 in Quezon City, Luzon North, plant a banaba tree seedling during a service event inspired by Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si ’. The council replaced 26 banaba trees damaged by herbal medicine dealers who had stripped the trees’ bark.

GOD AND COUNTRY

Knights and family members from Father Michael J. McGivney Assembly 3004 in Allen, Texas, prayed a patriotic rosary by e Wall at Heals, a traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, when it visited the Dallas area this summer. Following the rosary, assembly member Dave Rave played “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes.

FEAST OF SOLIDARITY

For the past three years, St. John Paul II Council 16535 in Lovingston, Va., has organized an annual dinner featuring Ukrainian cuisine to support families in Ukraine a ected by the war. is year, the dinner raised $6,000 for the Order’s Ukraine Solidarity Fund, bringing the fundraiser’s cumulative total to $27,000.

POLICE PROTECTION

Knights from Father Francis A. Ryan Council 5025 in Chicago prepared food for a recent pancake breakfast at St. Mary of the Woods Parish to bene t the Chicago Police Department. e council worked with Alderman James Gardiner and others to host the event, which raised more than $4,000

to purchase new protective vests for Chicago police o cers. Before the breakfast, a Mass was celebrated by Father Daniel Brand, chaplain to both the police force and St. Michael the Archangel Council 12173.

LAKE CHARLES COATS FOR KIDS

John W. “Jack” O’Reilly Sr. Council 13931 in Lake Charles, La., collected more than 70 coats from parishioners of Christ the King Catholic Church to donate to Abraham’s Tent for distribution to people experiencing homelessness. Council members routinely volunteer for the organization, which provides hundreds of meals to people in need each week.

TORNADO RECOVERY EFFORTS

In late May, a powerful EF4 tornado with winds up to 185 mph ripped through Green eld, Iowa, killing ve people and damaging or destroying more than 150 homes. A few weeks later, several Knights and family members from St. omas More Council 15049 in Coralville traveled 170 miles across the state to help with cleanup e orts.

Community

Financial Secretary René Samson (left) and Treasurer George Landry of Father/Père Vincent de Paul Council 14280 in St. Peter’s, Nova Scotia, deliver warm jackets to Denise Doucette of the Potlotek First Nation as part of the Knights of Columbus Coats for Kids program. The Knights also donated coats and CA$250 each to the three food banks located at the parishes served by the council.

TRAINING CAN SAVE LIVES

More than 100 parishioners from St. omas More Catholic Church a ended a rst-aid seminar sponsored by St. omas More Council 11439 in Oceanside, Calif. e seminar, which was led by council program director Dr. Phil Goscienski, educated participants on controlling potentially fatal bleeding, including proper tourniquet application.

Life

ARIZONA ADVOCATES FOR LIFE

During its annual baby bo le drive, Father John C. Borley Council 17036 in San Tan Valley, Ariz., raised more than $15,600 for Vineyard Pregnancy Center in Queen Creek, far surpassing the $9,200 the council collected in 2023. e funds will be used to buy an ultrasound machine for the center’s new location in San Tan Valley. Council 17036 previously purchased, with help from the Ultrasound Initiative, a portable ultrasound machine that the center uses in its Queen Creek o ce and its mobile unit.

Knights from Mary, Cause of Our Joy Council 8447 in Muntinlupa, Luzon South, deliver a donation of more than 1,000 baby diapers to the Putatan Health Center. The diapers will be distributed to 50 pregnant women in need.

Manus Hand, chancellor for Ave Maria Council 7880 in Parker, Colo., helps Kimberly Atler with her fishing pole during the council’s annual fishing derby for people with intellectual disabilities. The Knights provided participants with poles, tackle and bait; assisted them with casting and untangling their lines; and served a lunch of hot dogs and hamburgers. Council 7880 also helps to organize the St. Joseph of Cupertino Ko ee House, a monthly evening of food and entertainment for people with disabilities and their families.

A LOVING CHOICE

St. Joseph Council 12354 in Mount Washington, Ky., collected about $630 in baby wipes during a drive at St. Francis Xavier Church. e wipes were given to A Loving Choice Pregnancy Support Center in Shepherdsville, bringing Council 12354’s total donations to A Loving Choice over the year to $2,000; through the ASAP program, the Supreme Council will donate an additional $400 to the center.

AL(L) IN ON ULTRASOUNDS

Our Lady of the Valley Council 9676 in Birmingham, Ala., helped raise more than $26,000 to purchase new ultrasound machines for pro-life organizations. e Knights used $14,525 — matched through the Ultrasound Initiative — to buy a new machine for a mobile unit operated by Life on Wheels. e remaining funds — about $11,500 — went to help Cullman (Ala.) Council 1484 purchase an ultrasound machine for First Source for Women in Hanceville.

SERVING SPECIAL NEEDS

Father Leonard D. Di Falco Council 15745 in Yonkers, N.Y., donated $4,000 to the Elizabeth Seton Children’s Center. e funds will support the organization’s new facility that serves young people with disabilities who age out of its pediatric care.

CORRECTIONS

On page 6 of the October issue, the number of members recruited in the past fraternal year by Past State Deputy Walter Streit of Alberta should have read 472, not 242. • Also on page 6, the namesake of Council 5295 in Narraganse , Rhode Island, should have read Pope Pius XII.

See more at www.kofc.org/knightsinaction

Please submit your council activities to knightsinaction@kofc.org

Star Councils Awarded

For the 2023-2024 fraternal year, 2,609 councils earned the Star Council Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement in membership, insurance and programming. Of these councils (listed here), 350 earned the Double Star Council Award (200% of membership quota) and 275 earned the Triple Star Council Award (300% or more of membership quota) or higher.

In addition, 4,446 councils earned the Columbian Award for excellence in programming; 4,605 a ained the Father McGivney Award for meeting their membership quota; and 2,883 earned the Founder’s Award for meeting their insurance quota.

5120 5204 5269 5691 5739 5773 6080 6171 6185 6303 6613 6775 7126 7718 7731 7843 7876 7919 8174 8226 8254 8652 8691 8751 8754 8801 8804 8825 8833 8834 9008 9011 9054 9087 9101 9343 9353 9449 9459 9582 9786 9878 10187 10227 10638 10639 10860 11289 11754 11900 11990 12042 12125 12259 12507 12513 12624 12794 12810 12890 13183 13292 13332 13344 13616 13647 13751 13774 13853 14052 14177 14258 14592 14901 15166 15221 15387 15432 15554 15617 15628 15697 15933 15998 16246 16272 16289 16302 16323 16445 16542 16563 16597 16632 16651 16847 16993 16998 17053 17274 17283 17297 17344 17801 17873 17880 17894 17936 17971 18176 18183 18454

JERSEY (CONT.)

Knights from St. John Bosco Council 10986 in Edmonton, Alberta, hold a canopy over the Blessed Sacrament during a Eucharistic procession organized by the council to celebrate Corpus Christ Sunday and the 40th anniversary of St. John Bosco Catholic Church. More than 500 parishioners participated in the procession — the first organized by Council 10986 — and attended the barbecue the Knights hosted afterward.

OFFICIAL NOVEMBER 1, 2024:

To owners of Knights of Columbus insurance policies and persons responsible for payment of premiums on such policies: Notice is hereby given that in accordance with the provisions of Section 84 of the Laws of the Order, payment of insurance premiums due on a monthly basis to the Knights of Columbus by check made payable to Knights of Columbus and mailed to same at PO Box 1492, NEW HAVEN, CT 06506-1492, before the expiration of the grace period set forth in the policy. In Canada: Knights of Columbus, Place d’Armes Station, P.O. Box 220, Montreal, QC H2Y 3G7 ALL MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOS, ARTWORK, EDITORIAL MATTER, AND ADVERTISING INQUIRIES SHOULD BE MAILED TO: COLUMBIA, PO BOX 1670, NEW HAVEN, CT 06507-9982. REJECTED MATERIAL WILL BE RETURNED IF ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED ENVELOPE AND RETURN POSTAGE. PURCHASED MATERIAL WILL NOT BE RETURNED. OPINIONS BY WRITERS ARE THEIR OWN AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT THE VIEWS OF THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS.

SUBSCRIPTION RATES IN THE U.S.: 1 YEAR, $6; 2 YEARS, $11; 3 YEARS, $15. FOR OTHER COUNTRIES ADD $2 PER YEAR. EXCEPT FOR CANADIAN SUBSCRIPTIONS, PAYMENT IN U.S. CURRENCY ONLY. SEND ORDERS AND CHECKS TO: ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT, PO BOX 1670, NEW HAVEN, CT 06507-9982.

COLUMBIA (ISSN 0010-1869/USPS #123-740) IS PUBLISHED 10 TIMES A YEAR BY THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS, 1 COLUMBUS PLAZA, NEW HAVEN, CT 06510-3326. PHONE: 203-752-4000, kofc.org. PRODUCED IN USA. COPYRIGHT © 2024 BY KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED.

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Photo by Matthew Barrick

Knights of Charity

Every day, Knights all over the world are given opportunities to make a di erence — whether through community service, raising money or prayer. We celebrate each and every Knight for his strength, his compassion and his dedication to building a be er world.

Members of St. Pius V/Our Lady of Guadalupe Council 17110 in Chicago make a delivery to St. Joseph’s Home, a soup kitchen operated by the Missionaries of Charity that serves about 200 meals a week. Council members purchase food for the kitchen at least once a month, and the Knights, many of whom are first responders, often drive through the neighborhood to make sure the sisters are safe and to see if they need anything.

Photo by Karen Callaway

‘I cannot thank God enough.’

Growing up in a Catholic homeschooling family, I knew my faith well. ough our ca le ranch was 45 minutes from the closest church, Sunday Mass was always a priority. My parents’ example of praying with Scripture each morning inspired me to do the same during high school.

As my relationship with God grew, I began to hear his call to the priesthood. e priests I knew in uenced me greatly, and reading about the life of Blessed Michael McGivney strengthened my desire to serve as a priest and led me to join the Knights of Columbus in college. A er my ordination as a transitional deacon, I had to take o a couple of years for health reasons. During that time, I reread biographies of and le ers from Blessed Solanus Casey — who is my greatgreat-great-uncle — and was inspired by how he always thanked God despite his own su ering and di culty during seminary.

Today, more than a year since my priestly ordination, I cannot thank God enough for the great blessings he gives me as I serve his people, especially by celebrating the Mass and hearing confessions.

Father Caleb Cunningham Diocese of Baker

Father O. Donovan Council 3636 Redmond, Oregon

Photo by Jay Fram