Al Collins 

Among the faces that pop to the minds of active members when they think of Booyah is that of Al Collins.  Al is one of those dedicated men who is willing, not only to help with the cutting of vegetables and preparation of the meat, but is also there at the wee hours of the morning when the fires are lit.  He got his start in the booyah field at the St. Bernard Parish Picnic one year and he seemed to be drawn to it--but, as he points out, "I don't make the booyah; I just cook it."

 

Council Booyah sales are hardly the first involvement Al has had with the Knights.  He joined around 1963 and recalls making First, Second and Third Degree all in one day--an experience he's not ready to re-live.  He became involved in the Knights at Ss. Peter and Paul in Green Bay, but after just a couple of years became inactive.  He remained away from things for about twenty five years, until a new Council began to form at St. Bernard.  Since getting energized  again, he has served the Council in a number of ways, including working with the Council's first  Pancake/Porkie breakfast last year.  Still, his name, like Roger Shaha's, may forever be linked to booyah as a tribute to the considerable work they and many others put into those projects.  Al also notes the good things the Council is doing with the Booyah profits, such as currently supporting a Knights of Columbus program for seminarians

 

A native of Manitowoc, Al has moved around quite a bit.  He served in World War II in the Pacific and Asiatic Theaters of Operation and he worked as a glazier for 38 years.  Before his retirement from Klien & Dickert in Oshkosh about six years ago, he had worked in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and throughout Wisconsin.  Al and his wife, Rosella, have been married for 47 years now and have five children.  They came to Green Bay and settled in the St. Bernard area around the time the parish was established in 1957.  Al is a convert from the Lutheran Church and has been active in the life of the parish.  In addition to his association with the Knights, Al has served as President of the Holy Name Society and the Athletic Club.  He was also involved with the Parish Council at St. Bernard and has been an usher.  He and Rosella continue service to the Church as Ministers of the Eucharist.

 

Al is making plans to join in the exemplification of the Fourth Degree in Appleton this April 16, another way of deepening his commitment to an organization he describes as "a great bunch of guys".  He appreciates the fraternity which is characteristic of our Council and reflects on one Booyah sale in which we used canned instead of fresh vegetables as something in which "we probably saved a couple of bucks but lost some of the camaraderie".  He's delighted to see the many  worthwhile causes that the Knights are involved in, and he's always willing to be a part of things.

 

March 1994