Grand Knight’s Blog – June 2024
June, 2024
Next Meeting
Date: Tuesday, June 11, 2024
Time: 7:30 p.m. . . . . . . . . doors open at 7:00
Place: St. Matthias Parish Hall
Activities and News Since Last Meeting
· Fr. Peter Devlin
Fr. Peter Devlin, who visits for a month every summer at St. Mike’s, has asked for our prayers. He was worried about some follow up blood tests this week but has already reported a good result.
· St. Michael’s Outdoor Memorial Day Mass
The annual Outdoor Memorial Day Mass at St. Michael’s cemetery was a success, although it didn’t happen either outdoors nor at the cemetery. After a summit of the leadership at 7:00 a.m., it was drizzling and a command decision was made to move it indoors into the church. Attendance was excellent – the church was packed; and Council #81 supplied coffee, donuts, bagels, muffins, etc. Thanks to Mike Tremblay for organizing the food donations; Frank Ramsbottom and Rich Cassie for doing the pick up and delivery; Brendan Butler and Kevin Armstrong for setting up and serving. Also special thanks to our donors: Honey Dew Donuts; Dunkin Donuts; The Main Street Bagel Factory; Café 641 and the Vintage Café for the donations of coffee, donuts, bagels, muffins, and pastries. Please patronize our generous donors.
· Welcome Fr. Stephen Madden
Fr. Stephen Madden arrived as the new Pastor at St. Matthias on June 1st Our intelligence sources tell us he was formerly an Assistant State Chaplain of the KofC, so we are looking forward to working with him.
If anybody is looking for Fr. Carmichael, he’s gone to St. Anselm is Sudbury, but has been appointed Chaplain at the Chapel of the Good Shepherd at New Horizons and is saying daily Mass there as well as the Sunday 9:00 a.m. Mass., so he will continue to be a regular fixture in Marlboro.
And Fr. Fran O’Brien is now Pastor at Sacred Heart in Lexington.
· State Convention
At the State KofC Convention in Hyannis on May 17-19, some important events happened. Council #81 member Mike Gibson was elected State Advocate for the next two years, the fourth highest officer on the State Council. G.K. Brendan Butler was on hand to vote for Mike. Also, our new State Deputy is Robert Schwartz, who was installed in New Haven this past week by Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly and Supreme Chaplain Archbishop Lorie. And, Mike Bello, who addressed our Council a few months ago, was elected State Warden. Finally, congratulations to Krista Butler, Mrs. Grand Knight, who won $250 in the state raffle in Hyannis.
· Fr. Giombetti Installation
September 29th Bishop Reed will install Fr. Giombetti as Pastor of St. Michael’s, and Confirmation will be at the same Mass.
· Guest Speaker
Cindy Dorsey from Decided Excellence Catholic Media will address the Council tonight. Decided Excellence is a new format of parish bulletin that has more in depth coverage of parishioners and families she would like to introduce to us. St. Michael’s is making the plunge into it, and the success of it depends on advertising, so let her know if you know of local businesses that will support this program.
Programs and Upcoming Events
· Election Night
Don’t forget, tonight is Election Night according to our bylaws. A slate of candidates has been proposed by the nomination committee as follows:
Grand Knight | Brendan Butler |
Deputy Grand Knight | Kevin Armstrong |
Chancellor | Scott Snyder |
Recorder | Dale Dolesh |
Financial Secretary * | Rich Caissie |
Treasurer | John Dedecko |
Advocate | Rich Pulice |
Warden | Ernie Waingortin |
Inside Guard | John Harrold |
Outside Guard | Tom Hirsh |
Trustee 3 years | Mike Fallon |
Trustee 2 years | Mike Tremblay |
Trustee 1 year | Mike Bleecker |
Additional nominations may be made from the floor. Turn out and vote tonight!
· Extraordinary Minister Training
Deacon Chuck Rossignol will conduct a training session for all those who wish to become Extraordinary Ministers of Communion at 6:30 p.m. tonight before the meeting. The Extraordinary Minister Program is up and running for almost two months now, and we have many volunteers taking communion to homebound parishioner as well as Nursing Home and Assisted Living facility visits on Sunday afternoons. Most of our participants have reported this to be a very fulfilling experience and almost no effort at all. Some of our members have “adopted” their communicants, and the program has great support from our pastors. If you wish to participate, see Deacon Chuck tonight or email Deacon Chuck.
· Coats for Kids
Mike Wells will propose a motion to participate again this year. We distributed 10 cases of coats to needy residents of Marlboro and Hudson last year, and this program helps link us with other agencies in the community where we can make a big impact, such as the Boy’s and Girl’s Clubs, St. Vincent DePaul, etc. Contact Mike Wells if you can help out with the distribution in late October or November.
· Labor Day Parade
We are registered and ready to go. Mike Gibson is taking the lead and has one car permit. The rest of us walk. We have been asked by some guys from other Councils, especially Wayland, if they can join us, so we plan to invite as many other Councils to join us. Nobody else has a Labor Day Parade except Marlboro!
· St. Michael’s Picnic
Three of our Knights are on the committee at St. Michael’s planning the annual parish picnic. This year, there has been lots of discussion about moving it to the Portuguese Club, or an Apple Orchard; and a strong movement to revamp the whole thing into a “Street Fair” around the parish grounds, with various ministries in charge of a booth or other activity. Stay tuned. Things are moving fast. Whatever format they decide, we will probably be in charge of traffic, parking, and other tasks. If you are interested in helping organize, contact G.K. Brendan Butler or F.S. Rich Caissie. Likely date is Sept. 21 or 22.
· State Officer Training
Grand Knights, Deputy Grand Knights and Financial Secretaries from all over the state will convene on June 22nd at the Boxboro Regency Hotel for an all-day training seminar. Show your support for Brendan, Kevin and Rich.
· Safe Environment Program
We need at least one more program member to take the Safe Environment Program. It’s about an hour of online instruction. No cost. Certification is good for two years. It’s not a real chore, and you will learn a lot. G.K. Brendan and P.G.K. Mike Tremblay are certified, but we need one more to be on call for events and programs. Please let the Grand Knight know if you can get this done.
· Blue Mass
The Blue Mass is a Mass organized for Police, Firefighters and EMS personnel in our community. Each year, hundreds of KofC Councils across the country sponsor this Mass to honor the local first responders in our communities. Unfortunately our May 5th date got scrubbed this year due to a conflict, but we are rescheduled for September 15th at the 10 A.M. Mass at St. Michael’s.
· McSweeney Assembly of Fourth Degree Knights
Next meeting is June 20th at 7:00 p.m. in Westboro. Please let Mike Tremblay know if you plan to attend for the headcount.
· Our Father’s Table
Mike and Robin Gibson lead the effort on May 9th and Council #81 had an excellent showing serving food to homeless and needy Marlboro residents. The program ran smoothly, wasn’t a big investment of time as the effort was properly divvied up. We believe this will be a regular program for us going forward, probably every six weeks or so. Contact Mike Gibson if you want to participate.
· Friend’s Fridge
Fr. Steven has deposited a refrigerated vending machine on the driveway next to the church, and it is busy dispensing food to needy residents. You can drop off refrigerated food any time.
· Off for the Summer
Remember, we are off duty for July and August. Next meeting will be September 10th. As is our custom, the Grand Knight will call a meeting of officers once or twice over the summer to get a head start on fall programming.
Other News and Meeting Agenda Items
· 12 months of free membership
Tell any of your friends or neighbors interested in joining, use the QR code below to join online and use the promo code “BlessedMcGivney” for 12 months of free membership.
· · Prayers / Intentions:
Please keep John Harrold and his family in your prayers, as well as Craig Fallon and Claire Fallon.
· Other business?
If you have an item to add to the next meeting agenda, please let me know.
News?
If you have any news to report, email GrandKnight@kofcmarlboro.org.
See you all tonight.
Vivat Jesus.
Brendan Butler
Grand Knight