Watch the 141st Supreme Convention Online!

Say a prayer for everyone attending the 141st Supreme Convention. 

May the Holy Spirit guide their time together. Blessed Michael McGivney, Pray for us.  Vivat Jesus! 

Interested in learning more about the Supreme Convention? 

Coverage of the event proceedings will be streaming live from Orlando. 

Watch live-streaming of the 141st Supreme Convention, here: http://kofc.org/convention

Looking for more? Follow us on Instagram at @KofC_Official and on Twitter at @KofC for a sneak peek at this afternoon’s Pin Exchange and tonight’s Awards Session and Welcome Concert featuring Scythian. #KnightsCon23

 

Request from St. Anthony of Padua Parish, from Ray Prom, IPSD

 Brother Knights, I received a phone call today from a parish priest that left me inspired, proud, saddened and concerned all at the same time. Saddened and concerned, because the parish priest was in dire financial distress. Proud, because he knew that he could contact the Knights, and he would get a response.  Inspired because I know when you Brothers read this and pass it on to your councils, miracles will happen.  I am attaching the letter this priest wrote also, so you understand the full story, but basically this is what it is about.

The priest, Fr. Patrick Donaghue, is pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in SE Portland.  His is a elderly parish, in a working class part of town. It is an old church, with old infrastructure, and costly expenses.  There is a lot going on right now to drain the bank account at the parish, and he turned to the Knights for help. Priests in Oregon are recognizing more and more that when they need something done in their parishes, the Knights will respond.

I know that we all support our home parishes, and many of them struggle also with maintenance issues. Second collections are pretty common these days to help keep up with building issues. That being said, some Knights out there have been extremely blessed, and understand the teaching of Jesus in being generous when you have received blessing. Perhaps some will respond to this pastor's request with his concern to keep his church cooled this summer for his elderly congregation.  Some councils also have been extremely blessed, with ten of thousands of dollars sitting in the bank, waiting for a "good cause".  I think this might qualify as the good cause you have been waiting for. Perhaps you would like to bless this parish with a share of your plentitude. Or, perhaps you have a council breakfast coming up for next month. Maybe, steer those breakfast donations over to this good cause.

However you would like to contribute, I would like you to send a check to our Oregon K of C Charities, and we will collect the money and get them to this good pastor.  Send them to me,  but make the check out to Oregon K of C Charities. That way individual contributors will be able to get a tax break on their contribution. Send them to:  Ray Prom     PO Box 369, Warrenton, OR 97146

Put in the memo line that this is going to St. Anthony of Padua.

I will make sure they receive the money. If an individual or a council would like to have a Mass said in thanks for their generosity, please indicate that also.

GK's and FS's: be sure you forward this to your membership.  There may very well be an individual  looking to bless someone with a monetary donation. If you are reading this, and not able to make a donation to this pastor, please stop for a moment and say a prayer.      Thank you and God Bless you!!!

Ray Prom

IPSD and President of Oregon K of C Charities

New Child Protection Training from Praesidium

 A reminder- if we complete all Safe Harbor training by the end of the month, there's a prize for our council.  If you get an e-mail that looks like this, click on the links and follow up immediately!

Note- if you log in and your "Start Here" menu is empty, then it seems you have nothing more that needs to be done.  I have a question about that in to Praesidium.

Oregon State Faith In Action Packed Event

 Worthy Brother Knights,

The Oregon State Officers collaborated and put together a plan for these Faith in Action Packed Events throughout the year. It is meant to offer the following opportunities:

- recruitment opportunities

- Holy Hour

- formation

- family time

- networking with other Knights in the area

- fraternal benefits

The first one is Saturday August 12th in Silverton at St. Paul Catholic Church at 1pm. See attached flyer.

I'd like to ask all councils within reasonable distance to please do the following:

- Encourage prospective candidates and their families to attend. This will be an opportunity for them to hear about the Knights and why they should join. It may answer those questions they've had for a long time now.

- Promote this event in your Parishes. Post this flyer on the bulletin board, in the newsletter, on their website, etc. Start now as it usually requires a few weeks advance. All with the pastor's permission, of course.

- Encourage members to attend these events and learn about fraternal benefits. Remember that councils must attend 2 Fraternal Benefit Events and have a total of 10 attend throughout the year if council membership is <99 and 14 if >100.

The State Officers are very strongly asking each council within reasonable driving distance of these events to come support.

Let's make these events a big hit and give men and their families the Faith and formation they need and encourage other men to join our Order!

The Bodies of Christ Poster

 Today's the Day for Eucharistic Announcements!

Tom Owens and Michael Chau commissioned an artist to create a poster.  Here's the description along with the picture itself.  
-----------------------------

----------------
NOTES REGARDING MICHAEL CHAU'S 'THE BODIES OF CHRIST POSTER'

In reflecting on the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ this month, I was struck by the gift of the Eucharist and the way we are to serve God and one another. I tried to capture these relationships in the poster I called the Bodies of Christ. Here are some notes to accompany it.

Figure 1 (top right) reflects the way in which we can share the gift of the Eucharist with fellow Catholics at Mass. In this figure, my nephew, Michael Chau, is distributing the body of Christ at Mass at St. Clare Church in Portland, Oregon. Michael, who was born in Vietnam, converted from Buddhism to becoming a Catholic about 15 years ago after going through the preparation program at St. Anthony’s Church in Tigard. He has since attended weekly mass at St. Clare’s where he feels privileged to serve as a Eucharistic Minister twice a month. He also serves as an officer in the Knights of Columbus there.

Figure 2 (bottom right) reflects the way we reflect Christ by serving family and friends. Here is a photo of Michael’s sister, Loan Wade, her husband Matt and their daughters Christina and Rosalynn, who live in Salem.

Figure 3 (lower left) was taken on Holy Thursday of Fr. Don Gutmann, pastor at St. Clare’s washing the feet of parishioners representing the need for each of us to serve others.

Figure 4 (top left) was taken by Tom Owens this past summer while Michael and I were visiting friends and relatives in Florida. We attended Mass at St. Timothy’s in Ocala and were surprised to see a bronze statue of a homeless person in a sleeping bag on a park bench outside the church. It was a bronze sculpture by Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz called ‘Homeless Jesus’. The original was installed at Regis College at the University of Toronto in early 2013. Over 100 casts have been installed worldwide, including the Vatican, since 2016 according to Wikipedia, (June 2023). It was a reminder to us of our obligation to respect and help the homeless and abandoned people in our world. When Michael saw the statue, he immediately went over and spontaneously knelt to show his respect for the forgotten in our society.

The center image of Christ was selected from the internet by a friend, Phiet Luong, a gifted graphic artist working for Tri Met and the director of the Vietnamese choir at St. Anthonys in Tigard. Phiet also designed the layout for this poster. Together, these images reflect to us the critical connection of our love for Christ in the Eucharist and its impact on our daily lives.

Thanks to Phiet Luong and the others involved.

Eucharistic Adoration at St. Clare

 This Friday, July 21 6:30-7:30pm, will be a Eucharistic Adoration at St. Clare's.  This is an attempt by Deacon Bill to increase family participation and faith in the Real Presence of the Eucharist.  Let every Knight who has an hour to spend with Our Lord in silence and prayer, bring your families and wives to support this attempt.

Other future opportunities will be on the Calendar as well, we'll be repeating this August 11 6:30-7:30pm along with the normal Saturday August 5 2-4pm adoration with pro-life Rosary.

The Cor Ad Cor program is to increase spiritual opportunities for Knights and their Families, and we can report participation in such Holy Hours to help our council achieve star council.

Meeting minutes July 18,2023

• Errata to seebert42@gmail.com
•  7:00 pm - Call to Order
•  Warden’s Membership / Check Roll Call
• Officers Present:  10
  
• Members Present:  13
•  Prayer - Our Father
•  Pledge of Allegiance
•  Roll Call of Officers
•  Reading / Approval of Previous Meeting Minutes (March)- approved
•  7:10 pm - GK’s Remarks (Don Mey)
•  Alter order to match bylaws
• Member Challenge - September 30 prizes for reaching 5 member goal
•  Blog / Calendar / Volunteer Opportunities - Check blog calendar for additional prayer
•  7:15 pm - District Deputy/ Mark Larson - Comments  - 
• Mark Larson, District Deputy 3 , thank you for the great turnout at the district meeting from this council.  Ask rec@kofc15485.org for the the slideshow.
  
• Getting Safe Harbor done by July 31 will enter the council in for a drawing for KnightsGear gift cards.
• The more people trained on Safe Harbor for Children, the better
• Competitions at District Level- two teams, orange and the green.  Whomever has most new members by March 31, determines what color the state officers wear at convention.
• Other Mark (Borch)- Warden- has a lot of experience and will help with membership.  Use Wives.  Use the QR Code.
•  7:25 pm - Treasurer’s Report (Mike Devlin) - Approved
• Fraternity Checking $1744.72
• Unity Savings $544.13
• Charity Savings $5.71
•  7:30 pm - Financial Secretary’s Report (Erik Riechers) - Approved
• Faith in Action  Books are here, as is the planner
• Semi-Annual Report due here in few weeks
• Form 990 for fraternal year is being sent 
• Checks ordered
•  7:35 pm - Membership Reports
•  Membership Director (Dan Riechers) 
• talk to everybody!  Talk to the wives.
•  Retention Chairman (Richard Digregorio)
• Called everybody last Friday
•  No Neighbor Left Behind Phone Calls (Richard Digregorio)
•  7:45 pm - Programs
•  Program Director - (Gene Andres) - excused
•  7:50 pm - Committees
•  Parish / School Updates
•  St. Clare (Don Mey)
• Summer Eucharistic Adoration Friday July 21 6:30pm-7:30pm, Saturday Aug 5 2-4pm, Friday Aug 11 6:30pm-7:30pm
•  St. John Fisher (Mike Devlin)
• Nothing new, but a followup on Coffee and Donuts- will check with whatever is going on 
•  Faith Director (Mike O’Phelan)
• St. Clare's is in Summer Season- Wednesday-Sunday most members were camping at Ft. Stevens.   Mass was attended by 192 people on Saturday.  Met new families, was absolutely wonderful
• Fr Don did point out that the two dogs that did attend were indeed Catholic
•  Community Director (Michael Chau)
• Poster on Eucharistic "Bodies of Christ"  
• Michael Chau is now Volunteer photographer with THPRD
•  Family Director (Ted Seeber) - Nothing for Family
• Kudos to Michael Chau and Oanh Ngyuen for helping Scott with his yard work.
  
• If you have recognition, Send stories to tkarl@charter.net
•  8:10 pm - KofC Business
•  Installation of Officers 2023/2024. Location SJF, SC? Dates?
• 
  
•  HFCC wish list, wants and needs.
• About $5000 worth.
  
• If we could get 10 councils involved, that's only $500 each
• Handed off to District Deputy
•  Audrey Brickland SJF Essay, “International Winner”. How best to build on this success? Update? (Tom Owens)
• Was in the Church Alive Newsletter for the Archdiocese
•  8:15 pm - KofC New Business
• Propose increase in the # of Pan Cake Breakfasts 2 in Fall/Winter, 2 in Spring at both SJF and SC.
• All prayer opportunities added to blog, Calendar? Header? Notices?
•  Knights to serve coffee & donuts (member drive) at both SC and SJF,
• how often? Tentative SC dates on calendar.
•  Knights clothing, group purchase - t shirts, and any other shirts, save on shipping.
• Dan, Mike D, Michael C volunteered
•  Open Discussion
• Knight of the Month/Family of the Month 
•  8:20 pm - For the Good of the Order (Mike O’Phelan)
• Poem/Prayer on aging
•  8:25 pm - Closing Prayers
•  Intentions for the Sick and/or in Distress – Hail Mary
• Seeber Family, for Ted's Discernment job search
• Orin and Meagan Arms - late baby
• Debbie Hinkleman's granddaughter Wade, age 10, on hospice
• Bonnie Owens
  
• Bonnie's younger brother Robert on hospice with heart problems and cancer
• Oanh Ngyuen's brother Thuy Ngyuen
• Manual from Italy 
• For Scott and Linda Pauline- in financial trouble
• 
  
•  God Bless the work of the council and its members and grant eternal peace to the souls of the departed members.
•  Prayer for the Canonization of Father Michael J. McGivney.
• 8:30 pm - Adjournment

Meeting Notice 7/18/2023

 Meeting John Clare Council #15485; Tuesday, July 18th, 2023

Hybrid Meeting (Online and In-person)

In-person location change!!! St. Clare Church Office - lower level Fireside Room

Hello Brother Knights,

Please join us Tuesday, July 18th, at 7pm for our next Council #15485 meeting. We will meet in-person at the St. Clare Office / Fireside Room, enter from lower level door at rear of office (parking available in Office lot  NE corner of SW 19th and SW Spring Garden St. across from the Church), or join Online via ZOOM invitation. Doors open at 6:30 PM.

Please check our blog calendar and recent posts for volunteer opportunities. 

Here is the AGENDA to download.

For Online:

The Online link will open at 6:50pm. Please join the meeting from your computer, tablet or phone.

MEETING LINK for Zoom App/website, or see below for audio call in instructions

July 18th, 2023 06:30 PM Doors Open

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87338834174

Meeting ID: 873 3883 4174

Kim Zea Volunteer Request, Coffee and Donuts

 As we heard at St. Clare's Mass this weekend, with the HVAC underway, Coffee and Donuts will be outside this summer.  Also, some of the normal volunteers have backed out.

Ted Seeber has committed to setup for the following dates, but we could use more help:

July 16, July 30, Aug 6, Aug 27

Please e-mail Kim Zea to volunteer

Deacon Bill's review of Sound of Freedom

 To get tickets or to pay it forward, please visit angel.com/freedom .

------------------------

Sound of Freedom – the movie

I wanted to alert you to a new movie called the Sound of Freedom. It stars Jim Caviezel who you may remember played the role of Jesus Christ in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of Christ.

Alice my wife, and I saw it at Bridgeport Plaza on Thursday. It is based on a true story of a fellow named Tim Ballard who was an agent for Homeland Security at our southern border and became a strong advocate for the voiceless cry of human trafficking of children.

The movie was produced by Angel studios which is the company behind the Chosen series. It is reviewed as harrowing, dark and gripping and it certainly lived up to this review. It is one of those movies like the Passion of Christ that leaves you speechless.

But is really not about the movie itself; it is about the message. It is a message of children as young as 6 years old being snatched and forced into sexual slavery.

At the end of the movie Jim Caviezel has a message from his heart about this despicable act that has become an epidemic and a billion-dollar industry for those who are evil and promote evil in our world. He challenged the audience to spread the word to see this movie so that the message “God’s children are not for sale” can be heard throughout this land.

After the credits there were the names of people (thousands of them) like you and I who made this movie possible. It still took 5 years to actually pass all the roadblocks so this film could be released on the big screen.

It is a must see for adults and teenagers. I strongly recommend supporting this movie. However, it will only be playing in the Regal at Bridgeport Village until Tuesday and the AMC at Progress Ridge until next Thursday. (other theaters in the area may carry it longer given the $2.5 million fund now created to pay for a wider release and for free tickets for those who can't afford it- see link at the top of this post for a way to search for theaters in the area showing this- Ted)

I for one will also be writing to our representatives in Congress to somehow address this worldwide problem. 

Deacon Bill

-------------------------------
Shannon and I saw the movie last night, it was pretty good.  I had been well aware of Tim Ballard's movement on this going back to the Obama Administration ( Operation Underground Railroad - click this link to give directly to his organization and find out more- they work with local law enforcement in many countries to ransom and free slaves) so I was hesitant about the "preaching to the choir" nature of my seeing this movie.  In addition, the entire topic of children at the border has become extremely politicized in the last 8 years or so; often to the detriment of these children, who are brought across the border by people who aren't really related to them but pretend to be their family.  

There were some aspects of the story line that were a bit "Hollywood science fiction", such as injectable GPS trackers and near-magic feats of detective work, but for the most part, they did not detract too much from the story line.

As of late, some very powerful people have acquired positions that allow them to protect and hide this $150 billion industry of slavery from the world.  ONLY the outcry of "God's Children are Not For Sale", can begin to turn the tide against this pornocracy that invades every aspect of corporate, civil, and even religious governance in some of the most powerful institutions on this world.

Ted

District 3 Council Officers training

Worthy Council Leaders,

 

A District Meeting/Training has been scheduled for Saturday, July 16^th, at noon.

The location will be St. Anthony Parish 9905 SW McKenzie St. Tigard, OR. 97223

 

Please arrive by 11:45 am so that we can begin promptly at noon.

 

The Meeting/training will be information from the State summer planning meeting.

Lunch will be available. Please bring $15.00 per person to cover the cost. RSVP is required  (sandwiches, roast beef, ham, or turkey) so that we get an accurate order.

 

If you have any questions, please e-mail me so that they may be discussed during the meeting.

 

Who should attend: You and other leaders of your Council, the Grand Knight, and the Financial Secretary are a must. All other elected officers and program directors are needed. There will be information that affects their duties.

 

Grand Knights and Financial Secretaries, please inform your council of this invitation.  Also, could you bring a list of your officers, directors, and chairman (emails, phone numbers, and addresses? This is for the state directory and DDs. Form 185 should have been completed by now and was due July 1^st.

 

Please bring your council’s planning calendar and a list of upcoming events.

 

 

Mark Larson

District Deputy District 3

503-528-4695

larsonmarkj@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supporting Our Shepherd, from the State Deputy

 Worthy Brother Knights,

Many of you may have heard some of the news recently about Archbishop Sample and his stance on "gender ideology" in Catholic Schools. As State Deputy of the Oregon Knights of Columbus, I sent a letter to Archbishop Sample expressing the support of the Oregon Knights of Columbus. 

Also, I would like to encourage each and every Knight of Columbus to see this petition and sign it:

Community Response in Support of Archbishop Sample's Gender Identity Document

As Knights of Columbus, we must stand firm with the Catholic Church and support and defend the teachings that it has upholded since the beginning. We must also support our clergy who work hard and face many personal consequences to support these teachings as well.

Vivat Jesus!

--

Kenneth J. Anderson

Knights of Columbus

Oregon State Council

State Deputy

kennethandersoniii@gmail.com

(541) 602-0249

11863 SW Greenburg Rd Apt 8

Tigard, OR 97223

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Text of the letter sent to Archbishop Sample from our State Deputy
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Knights of Columbus

OREGON STATE COUNCIL

11863 SW Greenburg Rd Apt 8

Tigard, OR 97223

Kenneth J. Anderson

State Deputy

July 5, 2023

Most Rev. Alexander K. Sample

Archbishop of Portland in Oregon

2838 E. Burnside Street

Portland, OR 97214

Your Excellency Most Rev. Alexander Sample,

It is with great honor and humility that I officially assume the duties and responsibilities of State

Deputy for the Oregon Knights of Columbus. I have really grown to appreciate the good work

and values the Knights of Columbus possess and I am excited to help guide the Oregon Knights

of Columbus to best serve the Archdiocese of Portland and the Catholic Church as a whole.

One of my first official acts as State Deputy is to write a letter to you, speaking on behalf of the

Oregon Knights of Columbus, expressing our complete and full support of you in the recent

turbulence around the gender issue in Catholic schools. You have so many Brother Knights

supporting you here in Oregon. We fully support your decision to stand firm with Catholic

teaching in Catholic schools.

The Knights of Columbus recognize that the Catholic Church is clear in its teaching about

"gender ideology" and family. God created humanity male and female and did so with intention,

not to be changed. God also created marriage between 1 man and 1 woman. We stand by that

teaching wholeheartedly.

We recognize the First Amendment guarantees the Freedom of Religion, which means that a

Catholic School that is Catholic in its name, should be guaranteed the freedom to align its

curriculum to Catholic teaching and doctrine and would be expected to do so. Since the secular

society's notion of "gender ideology" contradicts Catholic teaching, then our First Amendment

guarantees Catholic schools and right to adhere to Catholic teaching regarding the issue.

We also recognize the importance of being welcoming to students wishing to attend Catholic

schools, even if they are not Catholic. It is understood that part of being welcoming to Catholic

schools is that these students agree to adhere to and obey the rules and policies that Catholic

schools are at liberty to establish in order to remain consistent with Catholic teaching.

Finally, the Oregon Knights of Columbus are saddened by the amount of turbulence and heat that

has ensued from the media as a result of this decision. One would think it would be intuitive that

a school that is Catholic in name would seek to align its curriculum with Catholic doctrine and

teaching. As many secular schools are adopting more and more non-Catholic ideology in their

curriculums, many families are seeking to place their students in institutions that will be immune

from such non-Catholic ideologies. It is also disheartening that the media is unwilling to respect

the First Amendment right for Catholic schools to align their curriculum with Catholic teaching.

In summary, the Oregon Knights of Columbus would like to ensure that you have our full

support. If there is anything the Oregon Knights of Columbus can do to be of assistance, we will

gladly do everything we can.

Vivat Jesus!

Kenneth J. Anderson

Knights of Columbus

Oregon State Council

State Deputy

kennethandersoniii@gmail.com

(541) 602-0249

11863 SW Greenburg Rd Apt 8

Tigard, OR 97223

A 10 minute podcast from Our New State Deputy

 An interesting interview on The Morning Blend with SD Ken Anderson about his meteoric rise to State Deputy from joining at age 20.

Five weeks of Voice of the Shepherd

 Each of these are only half-an-hour, but in June we had Archbishop Sample, Bishop Peter Smith, and Msgr. Gerard O'Connor lead an extraordinary series of talks at Mater Dei Radio on vocation, adoration, the Sacred Heart and the use of sacramentals in our lives.  Together, the five talks add up to two and a half hours.  I'm posting the links to each in the blog, so that you may listen to these as a block, because each one builds on the previous one for quite a series.

Called to a Purpose

Amazing Grace

Enthronement in our Hearts and Home

Celebrate Life

Love Moves Us:  The Joy of the Priest

From the Immediate Past State Deputy

 Congratulations to all the State Officers, District Deputies, Directors, Chairmen, and Council Officers for an extremely successful year. Our final membership intake was 420 new members. We finished at #18 in the Order, with an intake percentage over quota at 127.66%.  Membership is only one barometer of our success, but it does indicate that Oregon is running again on all cylinders.  In addition to new members, we had a fantastic year of charitable giving, a fantastic year of activities, and our mission of saving lives and changing lives has made a huge difference for many thousands of people this past year.  Give yourselves a pat on the back for your many contributions to being God's hands in this world.

Vivat Jesus 

IPSD Ray Prom

Bodies of Christ poster

NOTES REGARDING THE BODIES OF CHRIST POSTER 

 

In reflecting on the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ this month, I was struck by the gift of the Eucharist and the way we are to serve God and one another. I tried to capture these relationships in the poster I called the Bodies of Christ. Here are some notes to accompany it. 

Figure 1 (top right) reflects the way in which we can share the gift of the Eucharist with fellow Catholics at Mass. In this figure, my nephew, Michael Chau, is distributing the body of Christ at Mass at St. Clare Church in Portland, Oregon. Michael, who was born in Vietnam, converted from Buddhism to becoming a Catholic about 15 years ago after going through the preparation program at St. Anthony’s Church in Tigard. He has since attended weekly mass at St. Clare’s where he feels privileged to serve as a Eucharistic Minister twice a month. He also serves as an officer in the Knights of Columbus there. 

Figure 2 (bottom right) reflects the way we reflect Christ by serving family and friends. Here is a photo Michael took this year of his sister, Loan Wade, her mother and youngest daughter who live in Salem. 

Figure 3 (lower left) was taken on Holy Thursday of Fr. Don Gutmann, pastor at St. Clare’s washing the feet of parishioners representing the need for each of us to serve others. 

Figure 4 (top left) was taken by Tom Owens this past summer while Michael and I were visiting friends and relatives in Florida. We attended Mass at St. Timothy’s in Ocala and were surprised to see a bronze statue of a homeless person in a sleeping bag on a park bench outside the church. It was a reminder to us of our obligation to respect and help the homeless and abandoned people in our world. When Michael saw the statue, he immediately went over and spontaneously knelt to show his respect for the forgotten in our society. This was the only church we have ever seen with such a powerful reminder. 

The center image of Christ was selected from the internet by a friend, Phiet Luong, a gifted graphic artist working for Tri Met and the director of the Vietnamese choir at St. Anthonys in Tigard. Phiet also designed the layout for this poster. Together, these images reflect to us the critical connection of our love for Christ in the Eucharist and its impact on our daily lives.  

Thanks to Phiet Luong and the others involved. 

Tom Owens and Michael Chau 

6.25.23 

A message from our worthy State Deputy

7-1-2023

 State Deputy’s Welcome Message

Worthy Brother Knights,

It is an immense honor to officially begin the new 2023-2024 Fraternal Year as your Oregon State Deputy. We have seen some incredible momentum in our State the past fraternal year and we've accomplished amazing things! Let's continue to keep this momentum going! My most sincere regards to Brother Ray Prom for all his hard work for the past couple of years. I hope to serve Oregon well also the next couple of years.

I would like to start the Fraternal Year by expressing some goals, expectations, and vision.  First and foremost, Faith formation and helping men become better is a top priority. To be a Knight means to equip ourselves with outstanding virtue.  The world is in dire need of such men.  The Knights of Columbus offer many opportunities for men to grow in Faith and virtue. Conduct yourselves always as a Catholic gentleman.

Oregon has been accepted into Phase 2 of the Cor initiative. Since this is an opportunity for spiritual formation, I would like to personally strongly encourage each and every council to consider implementing Cor. It will be an opportunity to grow in our Faith, connect with other men, and invite other non-members to participate. As I mentioned in my previous email, Brother Ray Prom will be the Evangelization and Faith Formation Director, which will oversee Cor. He will work with you on implementing and promoting them.

Another opportunity for Faith formation will be our 8 regional Faith in Action packed events.  This year, we will be holding some events regionally throughout the State that will include a Holy Hour, a formation talk on man's purpose and what the Knights of Columbus offers in helping men fulfill their vocation, Fraternal Benefits, and if men are ready to step forward, a CUF Degree (CUF Degree is the Exemplification of Charity, Unity, and Fraternity). This event is open to all men regionally and their families. It is also a great recruitment opportunity and counts as Fraternal Benefit nights. I would like to personally ask and request councils to support these events by encouraging members and prospective members and their families to attend these events that are in their region.

Be Knights of the Eucharist. I would like to encourage all councils to hold regular Holy Hours, whether it's Parish wide with the Blessed Sacrament exposed or even just in the Adoration Chapel for an hour. We must as Knights increase our devotion to the Eucharist, the source and summit of our Catholic life.

Invite your families to as many events as possible. We're hoping to make the Knights of Columbus in Oregon as family-oriented as possible.

A few other items: Each and every event is an opportunity to invite other men to the Knights.  Always have promotional materials available such as the QR code, Faith in Action information, prayer cards, etc. Be visible. Wear badges, KofC shirts, vests, hats, ties,etc.

I will be sending out more information on materials very soon. This will include resources, incentive information, star council information, etc.

Thank you to each and every one of you for all your hard work and time and dedication to the Knights of Columbus! The Oregon State team is looking forward to leading the State in amazing things! Let us all work together to form men and their families and make the world a better place!

Vivat Jesus!

--

Kenneth J. Anderson

Knights of Columbus

Oregon State Council

State Deputy

kennethandersoniii@gmail.com

(541) 602-0249

11863 SW Greenburg Rd Apt 8

Tigard, OR 97223