Grand Knight's Column
Happy
New Year to all of our members and your families. It is now definitely the
new millennium no matter when you started counting time. As we put up our
new calendar, it is a time to think back at past accomplishments, hopes and
dreams, and reflect on how they actually turned out. And at the same time,
it is a good time to look ahead and see if where we are heading is
definitely the direction that we want to go. This is true no matter whether
we are talking about ourselves personally or our activities as Knights of
Columbus.
The
start of a new year brings forth a new opportunity and a new hope. A new
opportunity to do the things that we have wanted to do in the past and have
yet to get around to. This is typically the time of the year that
commitments are made to lose weight, exercise more, eat better, and be
healthier. Whatever our commitment or focus is, it is important to realize
that the new year brings with it new opportunity. Mark Twain writes, "I
was seldom able to see an opportunity until it ceased to be one." Think
about this statement. How often have we said the words, "Should
have...," "Could have...," "Would have...," when
looking back at a missed opportunity?
Well,
the new year brings with it new challenges, new expectations, and new goals.
Decide what is important to you and what areas of your life you really want
to improve, and then make the plan that will make your hopes and dreams a
reality this year. Remember no one plans to fail at something, but often
people will fail to plan. By making your plans now you will be taking
advantage of the opportunity at hand, and your "Regrets" will be
less when you reflect back on the year 2001 when 2002 comes along. And as
you are planning out your year, your commitments, and your goals, remember
to include the Knights in those plans.
Rick
Noe
Grand Knight
Next Meeting
Please
mark your calendars for the first meeting of Council 10243 in the
twenty-first Century. We will
meet as usual on the third Monday, January 15.
There is a First Degree scheduled to precede the meeting that will
begin at 7:00 PM, so the meeting itself will get started around 7:40. Out of respect to the Degree team and any candidates, no one
is admitted to the Council chamber during the exemplification.
At
the January meeting, Council members customarily vote for recipients of the
Council's major awards--the Family of
the Year and Knight of the Year.
These awards, along with the Distinguished
Service Award, are presented at the Appreciation Dinner in February.
Honorary Life Membership
In
addition to Priests and Religious Brothers who have Honorary Life Membership
in the Knights of Columbus, "Members who have attained the actual age
of 70 years and who have been members of the Order for 25 consecutive years,
and those who have been members of the Order for 50 consecutive years
regardless of age, shall be designated as Honorary Life Members..."
Our
Reverend Fathers are: Douglas E. Le
Captain; Albert E. Lis, O.F.M; Jerome
P. Pastors; David J. Pleier; and Michael
Seis.
Our
Council also has five non-clerical life members: Harris D. Charles (38
years of service;) Robert A.
DeGrave (40 years of service;) our newest distinguished Honorary Life member
Wencil A. Froelich (33
years of service;) Luke P. Siudzinski
(38 years of service) and Wayve W. Weber
(59 years of service.)
We
can appreciate the work these men have done for the Order in the past as
well as the present. As our Council is only ten years old, all of these men
were transfers in to 10243.
Pancake Porkie Breakfast
Our
Council is once again sponsoring a Pancake and Porkie breakfast for St.
Bernard Parish. We have
reserved the services of "Big Jake's Pancakes" for Sunday,
February 11th. The proceeds
from this event are to be donated toward the educational programs of the
parish. This is a fun event
that benefits the parish and raises a lot of awareness for our Council.
Plan now to attend as a worker and have breakfast with us on that
morning. We will be setting up
at 7:00 AM and serving continuously from 8:30 until 11:00, leaving a quick
hour for clean-up as the Activity Center is in use again at noon.
We need volunteers to set up, sell tickets, help serve, and, of
course, clean up. Spouses and
older children are encouraged to help as well.
Please mark your calendars now so that you will be free to come to
this event. This will be the
climax event for the 'Mid Winter Flurry' weekend of Dance, Auction, Raffle and Breakfast.
A sign-up sheet will be available at the next meeting, or call Rick
Noe at 468-3194 or 217-1179.
Special Days
A =
Marriage Anniversary
B = Birthday
O =
Ordination Anniversary + = Date of Death
January
15
B Edith (Weldon) Kiernan
16 A
Tom & Mary Marquardt
17 B
Mike Barry
18 B
Rick Tlachac
21 B
John Schmitz
24 B
Bill Griesbach
28 B
Sandra (Roger) Heesacker
29 +
Dan McLaughlin
30 +
Arnold Chaloupka (1996)
31 B
John Laurant
February
02
B Carrie (Ken) Greetan
02 B
Paul Tilot
03 B
Mary (Rick) Noe
05 B
Mary (Terry) Famaree
06 B
Colleen (Donald) Hoff
08 B
Ray Demerath
12 B
Ken Delcore
12 +
Al Cisler (1996)
14 B
Dave Doering
15 A
Wayne & Alice Wassenberg
Chaplain's Column
I
attended a seminar several years back titled something like "The Church
of the Twenty First Century." At
that time the twenty-first century seemed quite far away, but now we have
crossed that threshold. The
selected speakers talked a lot about what the Church of the Future might be
like, and it was a pretty interesting day.
When it came time for questions, I asked what 'they' might be saying
in the future about the Church of the Twentieth Century, and the speakers
weren't exactly sure how to respond. That
raises an interesting point for us today--we all want to be remembered
somehow; we want to make a mark on the world, and perhaps make some
contribution. We all have some
fear of being forgotten ten minutes after we're dead.
Rather than thinking about the new year resolutions that we've made
and already broken so far this year, it might be a good idea to think about
what contribution we have made to the world and the Church of today.
Will we be remembered in the future for being persons of
extraordinary faith and deep convictions?
Or, will we look down from our (presumed) place in heaven and sadly
note that we really made very little difference?
Maybe there is a touch of vanity in wanting to make our mark on the
world, but that is, I hope, why we got involved in an organization like the
Knights of Columbus in the first place.
We want to 'do' something--to accomplish some movement toward the
betterment of humanity. Probably,
we won't cure the common cold or cause there to be a just and lasting peace
in the lands where Jesus walked, but we can do something about our own
families and neighborhoods, and about the little segment of the Church which
we call the Diocese of Green Bay. The
Knights are about the business of changing the world for the better, one
small project at a time. Each
of us has the chance to become a part of that progress.
Each NEWSLETTER and each
meeting of the Council brings an opportunity to do something that might just
make the life of another person just a little bit better.
I can't guarantee that getting more involved in the life of the
Council will secure anyone's place in history, but let's face it--how can it
hurt? Resolve this year to come
closer to the family of the Knights so at least you'll have the opportunity
to be an agent for positive development in our world.
Father
Al Lis, O.F.M.
Chaplain
Brothers
We
note the transfer of Robert
Hieronimczak to Council 4439 in Pulaski.
Bob was quite involved in the life of our Council and served as
editor of this NEWSLETTER from
1994 until 1997. He also was Trustee of the Council for much of that same
period of time. Bob was Knight
of the Month and, with his wife Kathy, was honored as Family of the Month
several times. He most recently
served as Family Director since 1998, and is a Fourth Degree Knight.
We also regret the withdrawal of Joseph
Raisleger, Third Degree member.
100th State
Convention
The
100th Annual Convention of the Wisconsin State Council is scheduled for
LaCrosse on April 28-29. While
at this point we do not anticipate any elections, there will be plenty going
on during the Convention. One
special event planned is the 100th Anniversary First Degree, to be held
during one of the business sessions of the Convention.
Each Council in the State is to bring at least one candidate for the
exemplification. Delegates to
the Convention are customarily the Grand Knight and Past Grand Knight,
though their alternates have sometimes represented us.
One need not be a delegate in order to take part in the Convention,
so consider the trek to LaCrosse and be a part of Council 10243's
representation.
Dues
As
of this writing, only about half the members of the Council have not
yet paid their dues for the new year. Dues
were to be in by December 31. If
you are one of those who have not yet paid, please see to the matter
immediately. Remember too that
a late fee is added to the bill for anyone who is not paid up by the end of
February. Thank you for
attending to the details of Council membership as quickly as possible.
Appreciation Dinner
Please
see the attached sheet for further information on the annual Appreciation
Dinner, scheduled for Sunday evening, February 18. Reservations are due by Wednesday, February 14.
Treat your Valentine to a special evening of fun and entertainment.
Contact Rick Noe for
further information.
Charity Raffle
The
2001 Charity Raffle is in full swing--coordinator Leon Janowski reports
that about 10% of the Council (13 men) have responded thus far with sales of
$535.00. Obviously we have a
long way to go, so please think about the good that the proceeds have done
in the past and turn attention toward selling off the tickets. First to turn in any proceeds was Father Al Lis; second was Father Dave
Pleier. For more tickets or
other raffle information, contact Leon at 468-7544.
Life Events
We
recently received word that a brother of the Council experienced the deaths
of people close to him, but, unfortunately, the information never got out to
the rest of the Council. A
reminder: If you have something to celebrate--or would appreciate the
prayers of the families of the Council in times of stress, please contact GK
Rick Noe (468-3194), FS Jim
Barnett (468-1245) or Chaplain Father
Al Lis (437-1979). If we
believe in the power of prayer, let us put that power to work for the needs
of our own. Certainly, if you
are suffering through the death of a loved one, please don't assume that
everyone knows about it. Despite
our careful attention, sometimes the critical events in the lives of our
brothers remain unknown.
Prayer
Prayer
for Christian Unity
January 18-25 is the
annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
God
of unity and peace,
you are the Good Shepherd
and you lovingly guide all who know your voice.
Bring together in one fold
all who call on the Name of Jesus your Son
and who have been saved
through the power of his Name.
We have all been consecrated to you
by our common Baptism.
Enable us now to work together
to restore the unity of faith
for which we have prayed.
May all who glory in the name of Christian
come to serve you as true brothers and sisters.
We ask this through Christ,
our source of unity and our Lord.
The
Spotlight is on Bob Wozniak
