AUGUST 2016

Knightly News

Inside this issue:

Grand Knight’s

Corner,

Sprague Lake &

Planning Meeting

2

Gregory Morrow

Project

3,

4

&

5

Summer

Leadership

Meeting &

Bishop White

Seminary

6

Mobile Food Bank 7

Patriot Award 8

Mentorship &

Chairmanship 9

BACK PAGE

Calendar

St. Joseph Council 8872

This past March Gregory Morrow, one

of our Parish Altar Servers, was

diagnosed with a cancerous brain

tumor. He was operated on here in

Spokane and then sent to Seattle for

eight weeks of Proton and Chemo

Therapy. Because of the long recovery road and the need for constant care,

Susan, Gregory’s mom, had to leave

her job. As a result, it became

necessary to sell the family home and

move into smaller quarters using the

proceeds of the sale to support the

family. The family home, which had four

children and a dog, required some

sprucing up before being put on the

market for sale. The Council put

together a plan to help this family and

try and get their lives back to as normal

as possible considering the situation.

The Plan was in three parts:

(1) Renovate the home with Knight

labor and ask for material donations

from local retailers wherever possible.

Realizing we could not expect 100% of

material costs to be donated, the

Council voted the use of Council funds

that would be repaid utilizing the

second part of the plan; (2) The

Council would have a Pig Roast on the Church Grounds, selling tickets to

Parishioners and Midway Elementary

School families where Gregory went to

school. We would also have a silent

auction and again ask Parishioners and

Knights to contribute items for the

event. The funds from this event would

first go to cover any outlays the

Council had made on materials to fix

the home, and the remainder would be

given to the Morrow family; (3) In

order to raise some additional funds,

the Council would work some

additional days at the Sprague Lake

Rest Stop on Interstate 90 during July.

More inside...

Gregory Morrow Project

Over 300 people attended the Pig Roast held behind the Church.

Grand Knight’s Corner

Page 2 Knightly News AUGUST 2016 Page 2

Grand Knight’s Corner

Reflecting back on my first year

as Grand Knight, I can say with

complete honesty that you guys

are a fantastic group of Catholic

men and I am honored that you

have trusted me to lead you.

We accomplished much last

year and have a lot in store for

the coming fraternal year.

Thanks so much to all of you

who helped throughout the

year, especially my fellow

officers and program directors.

This past summer was busier

than usual due to the Pig Roast

and Auction we held in July for

the benefit of Gregory Morrow

and his family. There will be

some slides at the September

business meeting capturing

some of the action. It was truly

an awesome effort by our

council. Besides the money

raised at the event itself, the

work done by the Knights in

June to rehabilitate the Morrow house in advance of selling it

was extraordinary, with almost

no part of the house being left

untouched.

The Sprague Lake Rest Stop

activity went well with a net

collection of almost $3000. As

always, thanks to all the Knights

and wives who gave the time to

drive an hour (each way) and

serve a 4 hour shift helping

travelers. Thanks also to all the

cookie bakers.

As always, we would love to

have brothers step up and

volunteer to lead a specific

event (Chairman). We have

several events without an assigned Chairman at this time,

so please prayerfully consider

whether God is calling you to

help out council and parish in a

focused manner. We have lots

of support and resources

available so that Chairmen are

not left “hanging out”. The risk

is low and the reward is great!

“I can say with

complete honesty

that you guys are a

fantastic group of

Catholic men and I

am honored that

you have trusted

me to lead you.”

Vivat Jesus -

Mike Kerschen,

Grand Knight

Worthy Brothers,

Community Service - Sprague Lake Rest Stop

Annual Planning Meeting

In August, the Council held its Annual Planning Meeting to review what we have done in the past –

how we can make it better – and what new things would we like to do. These ideas will be shared at

the September 1st Council meeting.

In August, the Council once again assisted motorists on Interstate 90 by providing refreshments at the

Sprague Lake Rest Stops, helping to keep them awake during their travels. Again, special thanks to the

wives of the Knights who baked cookies and assisted taking shifts in the rest stop. The donations we

received will go to fund other Community Service and Council activities. Thanks to all participants.

Page 3

Gregory Morrow Project (cont.)

AUGUST 2016

The Plan was very successful. Knights worked

some 1,800 hours in sprucing up the home. This

included new kitchen and bathroom floors, fresh

paint on all the ceilings and walls, new carpeting

and padding throughout the home, fresh paint on

the exterior front of the house, fresh landscaping

in the front yard, painting the fence and staining the deck in the backyard. We were successful in

getting donations and discounted rates from

some local retailers: Carpeting from Great

Floors; Padding from Caruso’s; Paint and Stain

from Sherwin Williams. Also, a special thanks

goes to Eric Hyman who utilized his team of

experts to handle the more intricate work.

The Pig Roast had over three hundred people in

attendance. The Holy Spirit was with us, as in the

midst of several days of rain, we had a beautiful

sun shiny afternoon and evening. The Silent

Auction results were beyond our wildest dreams

as we received 102 donated items and almost all

of them sold at the Auction. In addition, the

“Donation Jar” played a big part in the fantastic

results we experienced. The couple of days

serving motorists at the Sprague Lake Rest Stop

on Interstate 90 was very successful and helped

increase the funds we gave to the family.

Through all parts of the Project over 60 Knights

participated in one way or another, something

which the Council should be very proud. Once

again the generosity of the St. Joseph Parish

Family has risen to the occasion to help the

Morrow family in their time of need.

Page 4

Gregory Morrow Project Photos

AUGUST 2016

Pig off the Barbeque – Ready to be pulled apart for eating. Painting the Ceilings

Painting the Walls and Everything Else Deck Getting Top Coat of Stain

The Head Mover Loads Up the “Moving Van” The Landscapers stop to admire their beautiful work.

Page 5 AUGUST 2016

More Gregory Morrow Project Photos

Tom Bulking Up Before Tackling The 3 Gallons In

Front Of Him Prepping the Walls for Paint

The Finished Product with Fresh Paint, New Roof and Clean Landscaping

Page 6

In July the Council was

represented at the State

Summer Leadership Meeting by

Deputy Grand Knight and

Program Director Chuck

Meeks and Trustee Art Smalley.

This year’s focus from Supreme

was the theme “Building the

Domestic Church”. This was

the follow up from Supreme

Knight Carl Anderson’s

message to the State Deputy’s

in November and his article in

the Columbia magazine in

December. The Supreme Knigh t emphas ized the

importance for all Councils to

assist in integrating their

programs so as to build a closer

bond between the Knights and

their Parishes, thereby making

their Parishes stronger. This in

turn will allow each Council to

grow along with its Parish, and

at the same time enjoy the side

benefit of building a better

relationship with their Pastor. There were several guest

speakers at the meeting. Of

most importance was our own

Bishop Daily who spoke about what the Knights can do to help

the Church. We also heard

from the President of

Washington State Special

Olympics. He thanked the

Knights for all that they do and

then told us about the

upcoming World Games for

Special Olympians next summer

in Seattle. A lot to do and a

really big need for Knights of

Columbus support. More to

come in the next few months.

Our final speaker was the

grandson of entertainer Jerry

Lewis, Matt, who is the V.P. of

Marketing for the Global

Wheelchair Mission. This is the

same organization that supplies

wheelchairs to our Council.

The remainder of the meeting

was spent with presentations

on the Featured Eight Programs

from Supreme. We as a

Council currently do seven of

the eight so there was not a lot

new for us in this area. Of

course, no State meeting would

be complete without a push to

garner new members. Certainly

an important activity for the life

of any Council, as well as the

P a r i s h . U n f o r t u n a t e l y ,

Washington State finished 64th

out of 74 Jurisdictions in its

membership goals for the past Council year. A Jurisdiction in

K of C vernacular is a specific

area of governance. For

example, each state in the U.S.

is a Jurisdiction, Canada has 3

Jurisdictions, Mexico has

approximately 6 Jurisdictions,

and the remainder are one per

Country for the other 15

Countries where the Knights

have a presence.

Summer Leadership Meeting - Building the Domestic Church

AUGUST 2016

Bishop White Seminary Clean-up

In August, seven members of

the Council spent the better

part of a Saturday cleaning-up

the Bishop White Seminary in

preparation for the arrival of

the Seminarians to start the Fall

Semester. Father Dan Barnett,

the Rector of the Seminary,

was very pleased with the work

we were able to accomplish

which included: power washing

the exterior of the building,

cleaning the gutters and roof

drains on the flat part of the

roof, weeding the exterior,

cleaning and reorganizing the

garage, hanging two new white

boards, and changing and

cleaning light bulbs in the

Chapel and the Gathering

Space. Father Barnett is starting his

second year as Rector and has

increased the number of

Seminarians that will be

attending Bishop White this

year. He has also done a great

job in improving the landscape

to make the Seminary as

welcoming as possible. Father

Barnett will be here to

celebrate Mass in October

when we do our Seminarian

Breakfast. Many thanks to the seven

Knights that made this possible:

Jim Kestell; Felix Roman; Chuck

Meeks; Don Patchett; Bill

Steffens; Mike Kerschen; and

Art Smalley. Please consider

becoming involved in this

activity next time we are asked.

Page 7

In August, the Council sponsored its third Mobile

Food Bank at the North County Food Pantry.

This particular truck-load of food totaled 9,676

pounds and was comprised of Watermelons,

Cantaloupes, Apricots, Apples, Banana’s, Bakery

Products, and Chopped Meat. Fourteen members

of the Council distributed the food to some 70

families. The remainder of the food was stored in

the Food Pantry for distribution to its normal

Client Base during the ensuing weeks. The

Council will be hosting another Mobile Food

Bank on August 30th at the House of Charity and

at Father Bach Haven. Many hands make light

work, so we strongly encourage all to join.

Mobile Food Bank

AUGUST 2016

Knights Packaging Food for Distribution Knights Distributing Food to N.C.F.P Clients

Page 8

Since 1985, the Fourth Degree recognizes three Assemblies who have had the best Patriotic Program

in the World during the past year. Our Assembly’s submittal was for our joint Assembly/Council

efforts in the performance of Once Upon A Mattress to provided 66 beds and bedding for the 40

Apartment Units at Fort Walla Walla which will be used to house homeless Veterans and their

Families at St. Michael the Archangel Haven. It is with great pride that our efforts were recognized in

the top three. Congratulations to all that made this effort so special for our Veterans.

To Be A Patriot Award

AUGUST 2016

Refurbished Officers Quarters to House Homeless Veterans

and Their Families

Knights join Rob McCann at Ribbon Cutting

Ceremony at Fort Walla Walla

The Apartments Look Out On the Parade Grounds

at Fort Walla Walla

Kitchen for One of the Three Bedroom Apartments

at Fort Walla Walla

Presentation of

the Play Proceeds

Check of $13,000

to Rob McCann,

the Executive

Director of

Catholic Charities

Page 9

Mentorship Program

AUGUST 2016

This year the Council will be restoring our

Mentorship Program under the leadership of

Chancellor Mike Schmidt. The purpose of

the program is to better inject our new

Brother Knights into the workings of our

Council and help them start building

personal relationships with their new

Brother Knights. In turn, this will lead to

more involvement and increase the number

of active Knights at both meetings and

service activities.

If you are asked to be a mentor, please

step-up to the challenge. This is another

important step in helping us continue to

build a strong Council and maintaining the many works that being a Knight of Columbus

is all about.

Responsibilities of the Mentor:

Become a friend to the new Knight.

Call him before each meeting and invite him

to attend. Make note of his reasons for

non-attendance.

Call and invite him to attend our service

programs. Make note of his reasons for non-

attendance.

Meet with the Chancellor quarterly for a

brief and quick overview of how the new

Knight is blending into the activities of the

Council.

If the report is fairly negative it will be the

Grand Knights and Chancel lors

responsibility to speak with the new Knight. This responsibility should last no longer than

a year for any individual.

Chairmanships

At our first meeting of the Council Year on

September 1st, we will be looking to fill the many

Chairmanships necessary to make our Programs

“Go”. As you know, we have seven Directors.

One for each of the six Service Areas and one for

Membership. They need our help in executing the

specific programs that we do each year. This is an

opportunity for each of us as Knights to step up

and lead a particular project or event. The one

thing that makes the Knights of Columbus at St.

Joseph Parish so great is there are plenty of

Brother Knights that have one another’s back.

The expectation that there is always plenty of

help is always fulfilled.

Each Director has in their possession an

Operations Manual which contains the Action

Items for each of the projects or events we

undertake. With this, the Chairman’s job

becomes as easy as following directions and

assigning tasks.

Our next major event coming up in September is

our Coats for Kids Campaign. Jason Malone has

stepped up to be the Chairman of this event. So

please give it some thought as to a particular

project or event that you might be the Chairman

for. For further information, please see our

Deputy Grand Knight & Program Director Chuck

Meeks.

3720 E. Colbert Road

Colbert, WA 99005

Phone: 509-466-4991

KNIGHTS OF

COLUMBUS

COUNCIL

8872

kofc8872@gmail.com

Officers Mike Kerschen - Grand Knight

Chuck Meeks - Deputy GK

Al McCarty - Financial Secretary

Mark Sievertson - Treasurer

Michael Bender - Warden

Michael Schmidt - Chancellor

Pete Lineberger - Advocate

David Gay - Recorder

Frank Ascolese - Outside Guard

Greg Woodard - Inside Guard

Unassigned - Lecturer

Michael Chorvat - Trustee

Art Smalley - Trustee

Michael Cahill - Trustee

Directors Chuck Meeks - Programs

Chuck Meeks - Church

Scott Charleboix - Community

Charles Porter - Culture of Life

Unassigned - Council

Unassigned - Family

Don Baldwin - Youth

Dwane Berens - Membership

Newsletter Contributor - Art Smalley

Editor - Al McCarty

September 2016 Calendar

Sept 1 Council Dinner Meeting @ 6:30 PM

Sept 3&4 Food Sunday Weekend

Sept 8 Fourth Degree Meeting @ 6:30 PM

Sept 10&11 Coats for Kids Collection Weekend

Sept 15 First Degree Exemplification @ 7:30 PM

Sept 17&18 Coats for Kids Collection Weekend

Sept 18 Coats for Kids Breakfast

Sept 23-25 Tootsie Roll Campaign

Sept 29 Officers & Directors Meeting @ 7:00 PM

AUGUST 2016