Mike Paoletti 

It was three or four years ago that Fr. Al, intent of earning a Golden Knight award for recruiting five or more men to the Knights of Columbus family, began to pester Mike about becoming a part of Council 10243.  So, just to be a nuisance, Mike had Joe Mastalir sign his Form 100 as his sponsor when he finally decided to join.  (Fr. Al got the award anyway.)  An extremely busy man, Mike does occasionally find the time to get to meetings and take part in other activities of the Council.  Like so many others, he took part in the Tootsie Roll drive and in various activities such as the Younkers Warehouse Sale.  While noting that he appreciates the fraternity and the insurance benefits that are available to Council members, he admits he also has a weakness for the snacks after Council meetings, and he points out that his boss (Roy Johnson) is a Knight.

 

A “Yooper” by birth, Mike is a native of Iron Mountain and came to Green Bay in 1983 where he joined the Green Bay Police.  An average day for him involves patrolling and being chained to a radio more than he’d like.  Like any other organization, there’s also the paperwork to contend with.  He would like to become more involved with youth in the future.  In addition to the usual “cop stuff,”  Mike is the Police Department’s representative to the Crisis Center Advisory Board and also serves on the Police Awards Committee.  He was a member of the interviewing committee for the Hmong liaison to the Police, and he handles communications for the SWAT team.  He also is involved with the Teddy Bear program which Council 10243 supports and is a part of the bicycle patrol.  Besides all that, he works with the Haiti Sister Parish Committee at St. Bernard, is a Scout leader and coaches girls’ basketball.  He also used to teach and gym at the “Y.”  For Mike, being a ‘cop’ seems to be what he is, not just what he does.  That means feeling as if he is working even when he’s off duty.  It also means being concerned with what is going on in the community and taking special notice of things going on around him.  With all of that, Mike admits there appears to be little time left for a life, but he does enjoy baseball in the summer.  He doesn’t feel that he is too athletically inclined, and he participates in Police ‘non-athletic’ (“just-to-have-fun”) teams which he feels his girls could probably beat in competition: “But I guess that means I’m a pretty good coach.”

 

Mike and his wife, Christine, have been married for about twelve years now and have two daughters--Angela and Alison.  Christine works in “proofs” at Norwest Bank.  Mike notes that many of his involvements in youth activities in the community have followed the progression of his daughters’ ages and interests.  In his time with the Knights he has found “They are not all gray-haired guys with fuzzy hats, capes and swords,”  but rather an organization committed to charity, volunteer service and community involvement.  Despite the ‘curious’ circumstances of his coming on board, we are glad that Mike has found the Knights.

 

May 1996