Knights News

Please download the latest version of St. Joseph the Worker Knights of Columbus Council 13359 Newsletter.

April 2017
March 2017
December/January 2017
November 2016
September/October 2016
 

Knights of Columbus Blood Drive – August 13
8:00a.m. - 12:30 p.m. – Bloodmobile at SJTW

Sign up online at www.mbcherohub.club and search sponsor code 0633 or contact John Yaeger with the Knights of Columbus at 763-772-7394 or Yaeger.john@aol.com.

Congratulations Emma Norton!

Minnesota State Youth Activity Director Patrick Farrelly recently presented 10 year old Emma Norton with her framed poster and a check from the State Council at a Council 13359 meeting.

 The award recognized her as runner up in the 8 to 10 year old competition of the Keep Christ in Christmas Poster Contest.  Emma continues to win prizes in this prestigious yearly competition!  She was also presented a congratulatory letter from State Deputy Bob Penas. Emma has also been a strong competitor in the annual KC Basketball Free Throw Championship. Pictured are (Dad) Brad Norton, State runner up Emma Norton and State Youth Activity Director Patrick Farrelly.

Join us every first Tuesday of the month to pray the rosary. It is held in the chapel.

LOCAL KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS COUNCIL RECEIVES TOP INTERNATIONAL AWARD
Knights of Columbus Council 13359 of Maple Grove has earned the top distinction of Double Star Council, one of the organization’s top awards, for the 2015 – 2016 fraternal year.  The organization’s headquarters, located in New Haven, Connecticut, made the announcement.  The award recognizes overall excellence in the areas of membership recruitment and retention, promotion of the fraternal insurance program, and sponsorship of service-oriented activities.  The award was presented to the membership by District Deputy Bill Peloquin at a special ceremony held on November 15, 2016.  

In announcing the local winner Star Council Award, Carl A. Anderson, chief executive officer of the organization, said, “Please accept my sincere congratulations upon attaining this prestigious award.  Your dedication to the Order is seen in the high standard of excellence you have achieved.  At the same time, I encourage you to carry forward this enthusiasm to meet the challenges that will face the Knights of Columbus in the years ahead.  May this award be a reminder and an inspiration to the members of your council to continue to promote the ideals of Columbianism for the good of the Church, your community and the Order.” 

“Receiving the Double Star Council Award is an amazing honor for us.  We’re extremely proud of this accomplishment,” proclaimed Patrick Farrelly, head of the local council from 2015 - 16. 

Council 13359 also earned the Star Council award last year for the fraternal year of 2014 – 15. 

The Knights of Columbus is the world’s largest Catholic lay organization.  It provides members and their families with volunteer opportunities in service to their Church, their communities, families and young people. With more than 1.8 million members in over 15,100 councils around the world, the Knights of Columbus annually donates more than $173 million and 70 million hours of service to charitable causes.  Please visit www.kofc.org for more information.

Message from the 134th Supreme Convention:
This year's theme is to be "A Light to the Nations", click the image or link below to watch a great video highlighting the 2016 convention in Toronto with messages from Pope Francis and our fellow Knights around the world:


Link to Supreme Convention video here and a note from Supreme Knight Carl Anderson here

Field Agent Update:
Brother Knights, it’s hard to believe but I have been working as your field agent in the council for a year already.  It has been a pleasure meeting many of you and serving you over the course of the past year.  Part of my job is to meet with all brothers and their spouses annually to update your family service record and to apprise you of the fraternal benefits available to you and your family.  To assist in this process I would like to invite each of you to contact me for a meeting in January.  This allows you to call or email at your convenience and obtain the appointment that best fits your needs.  I am available every day at 2:00, 4:00, 6:00 or 8:00pm, and mornings on Tuesday through Thursday.  If we have met recently the update should not take very long, and if we meet in January we won’t need to play phone tag for the rest of the year.

Dan Falstad
612-310-5254
dan.falstad@kofc.org

Coats for Kids
Knights of Columbus from three councils in the Northwest suburbs will be distributing winter coats to needy children.  We need your help identifying the kids who really need these coats.  This is the Knight’s annual Coats for Kids program.
Please identify children who need a brand new winter coat at no cost to them or their families and let us know how many coat vouchers you will need.  We will then get the vouchers to you ASAP.  Once you have the numbered vouchers, give their parents one for each child who needs a coat.   For example, a family in need has 3 children so give them 3 vouchers.  We only have a limited number of coats to give away so the vouchers will identify children whose need is great.
St Joseph the Worker and St. Gerard will combine efforts for a distribution on Saturday, November 19 between 10 AM and 2 PM.  Families can come to the distribution site with the numbered voucher to pick up their free winter coat.  The site address is:  Zanewood Recreation Center, 7100 Zane Ave. N, Brooklyn Park, MN.

Please note we will have girls’ coats and boys’ coats mainly in the following sizes, but will have a limited number of adult coats as well. Size S (8), Size M (10-12), Size L (14-16) and Size XL (18). 

We recognize that some situations exist where a family may not feel comfortable or have transportation to come to pick up coats.  In those particular situations, a volunteer or staff member from your agency may come with the voucher and pick out the size coat that is needed and bring it back to the family.  Agencies are asked to come between 12 PM and 2 PM only.

The Knights are in service to and partnership with the Parish communities of Saint Joseph the Worker, Saint Vincent DePaul, and the Church of Saint Gerard, making a difference by touching lives. Please respond to your contact when you know how many vouchers you need:  Roxanne Smith (763-400-7208) at Saint Joseph the Worker, Paul Greninger (763-257-2316) at Saint Vincent’s, Bob Bazinet (763-315-4364) at the Church of St. Gerard.  You may also contact John Jordan at 612-719-3834 if you have questions about the program or the Knights of Columbus.  

You can share this with others you know in the community that might know youth in need of a coat.

Thank you for your help with this important work to ensure our kids in the community have a warm coat.

Sincerely,
The Knights of District 52, Minnesota Knights of Columbus
 

Knights of Columbus Catholic Citizenship Essay Contest
Winning our essay contest could be a great addition to your college application, and give you a nice cash reward!   Parents –have a conversation with your children about religious freedom in an election year! Catholic students in grades 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 are invited to participate in the 2016 Knights of Columbus Catholic Citizenship Essay Contest!
Catholic Citizenship Essay Contest Entry forms can be downloaded (see below) or pick one up at the information booth by the faith formation entrance.
Download KC Catholic Citizenship Entry Form

363 Sandwich Project
On Friday, August 5, we partnered - and competed - with our youth to make 5,239 sandwiches for the homeless of Minneapolis and St. Paul! These sandwiches were part of a broader Summer Stretch mission that engaged 62 high school and middle school youth in our parish. Through the Summer Stretch mission, these middle and high school students served at Feed My Starving Children, ran a carnival for children living in a mobile park in Dayton and visited with residents at 3 local nursing homes in addition to making sandwiches. Great to see the energy of our knights and youth come together to make a difference for those in need.

Congratulations to Knights of Columbus Council 13359
The Minnesota Knights of Columbus held their annual State Convention in St. Cloud! Congratulations to our council for:
• Earning the State award for best public relations program!
• Earning the second place State award for Council programs with our Steak dinner and raffle gala!
• Earning the third place State award for Family programs with our Families Moving Forward picnic!
• We also earned the State Offi cer’s award for excellence in membership and programs as well!
Thanks to all who helped bring these prestigious awards home to St. Joseph the Worker!

We Don’t Take the Summer Off!
The Knights of Columbus, the largest Catholic Fraternal Service Organization in the World doesn’t take the summer off! Knights will be volunteering together at Habitat for Humanity, working on the MENding project, hosting a Families Moving Forward Picnic, getting trounced by the kids at 363 Sandwich making and having fun together! Now is the perfect time to become a Knight of Columbus! Contact Patrick Farrelly at 763-218-3816 or pfmaplegrove@aol.com. We need you! We are one new Knight away from earning Double Star Council, which we have never earned before! You could make a huge difference to us just by taking a small leap!

Annual Knights of Columbus Raffle Winners
Knights of Columbus Council 13359 thanks all who supported our 2106 Raffle! We hope all who attended our Steak Dinner Gala had a wonderful time! We announce the following winners of the 2016 Charitable Raffle:

• 11th prize - Osseo Meat gift certifi cate – Matt Stumpf
• 10th Prize - $100 - Kathy Kampa
• 9th Prize - $150 – Janese Evans
• 8th Prize -$200 – Patty Yaeger
• 7th Prize - $250 – Kevin Kavanaugh
• 6th Prize - $300 – David Hofmann
• 5th Prize - $350 – Franklin Vaca
• 4th Prize - $400 – Jim Schuetz
• 3rd Prize - $500 – Al Wenker
• 2nd Prize - $750 – Zack and Clarissa Lund
• 1st Prize - $1000 – Fr. Mike Sullivan

Father Mike has donated his winnings to two seminarians supported by the council – Bryce Evans and Andrew Zipp.

2016 KofC Basketball Freethrow Championship
We congratulate the winners of our 2016 KofC Basketball Freethrow Championship held Saturday, Jan 9 at Ave Maria Academy:

Girls Winners
9 Yrs Old – Hannah Griep
10 Yrs Old – Sella Griep

Boys Winners
9 Yrs Old – Cole Lindberg
10 Yrs Old – Haakon Nash
11 Yrs Old – Dean Lape
13 Yrs Old – Harrison Battist

Sadly, we had no competitors in the 12 or 14 year old categories who could have been awarded plaques as winners. Many thanks to all the Knights who helped at the event and  especially to Andy Fischer for leading and coordinating it for the parish and Council.
 

As we break trail on 2016, we can see our tracks from the last year in the blanket of new year snow. They tell us where we have been, and how we got there, but they don’t tell us everything we need to know about where we are going.
We will probably follow the same trail and do things the way we always did them, go to the same places and do the same things we did a few months ago. We have a pancake breakfast coming up, two fish fries and our Lenten observance.
We have a Major Degree at the end of January and a recruiting event in March. We will collect for people with intellectual disabilities in April and host our steak dinner and raffle at the end ofthat month. We will help people with our donations every month. A new year fresh start presents possibilities for us and I am excited by possibilities.
As Knights, as Catholic gentlemen, we are trying to become the best versions of ourselves. I propose that our council has the same goal, to become the best version of itself possible. The requirements to achieve Star Council mark the path for us on  our journey to be the best we can be. Our council has great programs, a growing and engaged membership, an active insurance program and strong relationships with Father Mike and Father Don as well as our parish ministries. We are touching lives in our work together and we have a lot to be proud of.I congratulate you and our auxiliary for accomplishing so much already this year! I ask you to consider what AREN’T we doing that we could be, or maybe should be? What is in your 
heart that you would like to see us do as a Council to strengthen us, to have more fun, to support each other or make a difference in our community?
What should we be doing that will attract more good men to join us?
Listen to that voice whispering in your ear and let’s see if what we can do or become. Regarding
the possibilities I mentioned earlier, it is definitely possible to make Star Council this year. BUT…
We need three new Knights to meet our membership requirement.
Will you help by inviting a friend or acquaintance to join us? We have a major degree at the end of this month so there is no more convenient time to recruit a member and have them complete their degrees as easily as possible. 

I wish you a Happy and Healthy 2016!

Knights of Columbus Council 13359 of Maple Grove, MN. has earned the top distinction of Star Council, one of the organization’s top awards, for the 2014 – 2015 fraternal year.  The organization’s headquarters, located in New Haven, Connecticut, made the announcement.  The award recognizes overall excellence in the areas of membership recruitment and retention, promotion of the fraternal insurance program, and sponsorship of service-oriented activities.  The award was presented to the membership by District Deputy Bill Peloquin at a special ceremony held on October 13, 2015.  

In announcing the local winner Star Council Award, Carl A. Anderson, chief executive officer of the organization,  said, “Please accept my sincere congratulations upon attaining this prestigious award.  Your dedication to the Order is seen in the high standard of excellence you have achieved.  At the same time, I encourage you to carry forward this enthusiasm to meet the challenges that will face the Knights of Columbus in the years ahead.  May this award be a reminder and an inspiration to the members of your council to continue to promote the ideals of Columbianism for the good of the Church, your community and the Order.” 

“Receiving the Star Council Award is quite an honor for us.  We’re extremely proud of this accomplishment,” proclaimed Patrick Farrelly, head of the local council.  

The Knights of Columbus is the world’s largest Catholic lay organization.  It provides members and their families with volunteer opportunities in service to their Church, their communities, families and young people. With more than 1.8 million members in over 15,100 councils around the world, the Knights of Columbus annually donates more than $173 million and 70 million hours of service to charitable causes.  Please visit www.kofc.org for more information. 

Knights of Columbus Council 13359 of Maple Grove, MN awarded a $500 scholarship to Catholic seminarian Andrew Zipp as part of their vocations support efforts.  Zipp, of St. Michael, MN, is in his first year of theology study at Saint Paul Seminary’s School of Divinity.   The scholarship was presented to Andrew Zipp by Patrick Farrelly, the head of the local council, at a special ceremony held on October 13, 2015. 
Scholarships are offered under the organization’s “RSVP” program which provides councils with support in awarding scholarships and establishing supportive relationships with local seminarians.  In presenting the scholarship, Patrick Farrelly said, “Please accept this scholarship on behalf of the Knights of our council with our prayers and an offer of support on your journey to the priesthood.  Thank you for listening to God’s call.”   
Andrew Zipp accepted the award gratefully and expressed appreciation for the Knight’s support the previous year.  He especially enjoyed attending the group’s April Steak dinner and charity raffle the previous year, expressing appreciation for their “warm welcome and hospitality” and asked only for continued prayers.  He promised to keep the council members in his prayers as well.   “I am especially grateful for all the support I have received from the Knights of Columbus on my journey.  Last year when we first connected, I was studying in Italy, I think, and now I am studying Theology at the St. Paul Seminary – still at St. Thomas – but I’ve moved from Philosophy to Theology.  I’ve been assigned a teaching parish, which has been a great experience so far.”
“Supporting seminarians means building relationships with them.  We are pleased to be able to offer some financial help, but the most rewarding part is getting to know men like Andrew, and walking the road with them, even for a short while,” commented Patrick Farrelly, head of the local council.  “We want to be a blessing for these men of faith.”