The Supreme Council
Knights of Columbus
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1 Columbus Plaza
New Haven, CT 06510-3326
A special report on Knights of Columbus support for the devastation from Katrina.
Katrina, after one year
"A Promise
Kept" - Knights of Columbus hurricane relief effort a major success $10 million
relief fund supplemented by hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours
New Haven, CT Aug 28, 2006 "The Knights of Columbus response to hurricanes
Katrina and Rita has been one of the most dramatic in our 124 year history,"
Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson said today. "As we approach the first
anniversary of Katrina's assault on the Gulf Coast, it is clear that much
remains to be done. But it is also clear that the response to the crisis by
faith-based volunteer organizations like the Knights of Columbus was a bright
spot in the wrenching aftermath of this immense natural disaster."
The Knights of Columbus Gulf States Disaster Relief Fund grew to more than $10
million, and that financial aid was supplemented by hundreds of thousands of
volunteer hours of service by Knights in the immediate area (hundreds of Knights
worked 8 hour shifts at the Houston Astrodome, for example) and by Knights
throughout the U.S. and Canada, who collected clothing, food and other staples
for storm victims.
The Knights of Columbus also quickly provided badly needed resources to Catholic
Charities offices in Baton Rouge, LA and Mobile, AL when they were suddenly
overwhelmed with thousands of people who escaped the storm with little but the
clothes on their backs. The Knights wired $200,000 to Baton Rouge Catholic
Charities just a few days after the storm hit, long before resources were
available from any other source. Individual Knights of Columbus at dozens of KC
halls in the region served thousands of meals to evacuees, and several KC halls
were made available to police and national guard officials for use as temporary
command centers.
The Knights of Columbus also made significant contributions to the restoration
of Catholic education in the affected areas, including a $500,000 grant to the
New Orleans Catholic school system which paid tuition expenses for hundreds of
low-income students whose parents were suddenly left without jobs or income.
With the help of the Knights of Columbus, 83 of the city's Catholic schools were
able to reopen. State councils in New York and New Jersey adopted Catholic high
schools that had been damaged or destroyed, raising $234,000 for Archbishop
Hannon High School, which was destroyed, and $65,000 for St. Augustine High
School, which is being repaired and will once again serve the low-income
African-American community when it reopens next week.
<http://rs6.net/
The Knights of Columbus is a lay Catholic organization with more than 1.7
million members in the United States, Canada, the Philippines, Mexico and
Central America, and Poland. Knights donated more than $139 million and 64
million volunteer hours to charity last year.
In service to one. In service to all.
ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
The Knights of Columbus is the largest Catholic family fraternal service organization, with more then 1.7 million members in more then 12,000 councils throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, the Virgin Islands, Guatemala, Guam and Saipan. The Knights has more then $55 billion of insurance in force on its members. Annually members at all levels of the organization report raising and contributing to charities of their choosing more then $135 million and volunteering more then 63 million hours of service.
Father Michael J. McGivney, a 29-year-old assistant pastor at St. Mary's Church in New Haven Conn., founded the Knights of Columbus there in 1882. The name "Knights of Columbus" was chosen by the founding members to signify that, like knights of old, the group embodied the spirituality and service to the Catholic Church, their country and those in need. The name was also chosen to emphasize that Catholics had been involved in the discovery, exploration and evangelization of the Americas. Father McGivney's cause for sainthood is under investigation by the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Should he be canonized, he would be the first U.S. born parish priest so honored.
The principles of the Knights of Columbus are Charity, Unity, Fraternity and Patriotism. These remain the foundation on which the organization continues to grow. Support for the Catholic Church is a hallmark of Knights of Columbus activities at all levels of the organization.
Financial and Fraternal Highlights
For the three years ending December 31, 2005 2004 2003 2002
(in millions)
LIFE DIVIDENDS $320 $329 $302
ASSETS $11,735 $10,947 $9,958
SURPLUS $1,529 $1,427 $1,326
NEW LIFE INSURANCE ISSUED $6,221 $5,221 $4,484
LIFE INSURANCE IN FORCE $53,356 $49,112 $45,636
TOTAL REVENUE $1,522 $1,461 $1,389
(EXCLUDES ANNUITY DEPOSITS)
For the three years ending June 2005* (actual) 2004 2003 2002
NUMBER OF COUNCILS 12,767 12,480 12,274
MEMBERSHIP 1,703,307 1,680,472 1,660,197
INSURANCE CERTIFICATES IN FORCE 1,571,643 1,541,004 1,515,280
CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS $135,753,039 $130,086,909 $128,554,307
HOURS OF SERVICE 63,159,359 61,821,480 60,821,480
KNIGHTS OF CHARITY
When Pope Benedict XVI delivered his inaugural homily at his installation Mass - an event telecast worldwide thanks to our satellite uplink program - he said, "The Church is alive!" The Church is alive because Jesus lives, and it is this reality that animates the work of the Knights of Columbus.
We demonstrate this central belief of our faith chiefly through our volunteer charitable service programs. It is in our works of charity in our parishes, our communities and around the world that we make present to those we help the living presence of Christ.
Charity is the animating foundation of our mission as Knights. When we become Knights, we pledge to be at the service of the dignity and destiny of our neighbor. The Second Vatican Council explains it this way: "The best way to fulfill one's obligations of justice and love is to contribute to the common good according t one's means and the needs of society" (Gaudium et Spes, 30). The care and concern we Knights show for those in need is, increasingly, a hallmark of our Order. Year after year, our works of charity increase and our financial contributions grow, leaving us no doubt that "He Is With Us."
This past year was the Order's greatest, according to our annual Survey of Fraternal Activity. In 2004, the Knights of Columbus set new records for chartable giving and volunteer hours. Total contributions to charity at all levels climbed to $135,735,348, exceeding 2003's total by more then $5 million.
This figure includes $26.3 million in contributions by the Supreme Council; $11,611,596 by state councils; and $97,753,348 in donations from local councils, assemblies and Squires circles.
In 2004 we also volunteered a record 63,159,359 hours of service. This is up from 61 million hours in 2003.
These totals are based on responses from 75 percent of all our units. Currently we are giving a less complete picture of who we are as Knights and what we accomplish for the good of society. It is our goal to have 100 percent reporting in the 2005 fraternal survey.
This goal is important for several reasons. Most critical now is a staff recommendation before the U.S. Congress to repeal the tax-exempt status of fraternal organizations like the Knights of Columbus. Needless to say, this would have a serious negative impact on us and on the charitable work of the Order. We have been working very hard on this issue, meeting with key senators about the value of our charitable work to our communities and the nation. I believe that the tide is turning in our favor on this, but we cannot afford to take any chances. We have already asked Brother Knights who are represented by members of the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees to contact their members of Congress on this issue, and if it appears necessary, we will broaden that effort and ask every U.S. Knight to contact his senators and representatives.
Our proven record of volunteerism and outreach makes us leaders in our communities and in our nations. As leaders, we deserve to have our voice heard on this issue. The fraternal survey also captured these vital statistics about our service:
SERVICE TO THE CHURCH SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY SERVICE TO YOUTH MISCELLANEOUS SERVICE
28.2 million hours 16.7 million hours 8.2 million hours 9.8 million hours
According to Independent Sector, the value of each volunteer hour in 2004 was more then $17. Our volunteer hours are worth more then $1 billion, using this measure. That is a tremendous record, and one that we should highlight.
Of the $109,364,944 total charitable disbursements by state and local units, gifts were made in the following categories:
CHURCH (in millions) COMMUNITY (in millions) YOUTH (in millions)
Church Facilities . . . $16,678,228 Elderly . . . . . . . . $ 2,126.928 Columbian Squires . $ 629,886
Catholic Schools . . . $ 9,578,274 People with physical Scouting . . . . . . . . $ 1,206,699
Religious Education . . $ 3,456,383 Disabilities . . . . . . $ 2,676,109 Youth Groups . . . $ 2,798,138
Seminarians/RSVP . . . $ 4,881,560 Special Olympics . . . . .$ 2,383,421 Youth Welfare/
Seminaries . . . . . . . . $ 1,663,306 People with intellectual Services . . . . .. . $ 1,536,865
Vocations Projects . . $ 1,839,231 Disabilities . . . . . $ 15,174,452 Athletics . . . . . . . . $ 1,871,980
Miscellaneous . . . . . . $ 5,762,116 Human Needs . . . . . . . $ 6,265,599 Scholarships/
Pro-Life Programs . . . $ 4,321,836 Education . . . . . . $ 6,032,610
TOTAL CHURCH Victims of Disaster . . . $ 2,221,171 Miscellaneous . . . . $ 3,964,153
$43,859,108 Hospitals/Institutions . . . . . $ 1,876,466 TOTAL YOUTH
Health/Service $49,357,074
Organizations ..$2,471,287 .
Community
Projects . . . . . . $ 5,875,652
Miscellaneous . . . . . . $ 3,964,153
TOTAL COMMUNITY $39,357,074
While our Church and community outreach increased from 2003 to 2004, our youth disbursements drop slightly. This is the second year in a row that this has occurred. I am happy to announce a new youth athletic program that will show the Knights of Columbus is interested in youth.
This fall we will kick off our Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge. Open to all boys and girls ages 10 to 14, the Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge should broaden appeal. Customized soccer balls with our emblem on them have been made available, along with all of the reporting forms, publicity guides and award certificates councils will need to conduct this program. We know that this program will become as popular as our Free Throw Championships, which this year had nearly 200,000 youngsters participating in competitions sponsored by more then 3,000 councils. We introduced new promotion items, such as K of C regulation-size basketballs, miniature glow-in-the-dark balls, and miniature basketball and backboard sets. These items were well received and helped increase participation from youth and Knights.
In 2004, we also reported the following:
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FOURTH DEGREE
The Patriotic Degree:
Another degree open to members of the Knights of Columbus is that of the Fourth (or Patriotic) Degree. On February 22, 1900, the first exemplification of that degree was held in New York City. The ritual added patriotism to the three original principles of the Order: charity, unity and fraternity. Any Third Degree member in good standing, one year after the anniversary of his First Degree, is eligible for membership in the Fourth Degree.
The primary purpose of the Fourth Degree is to foster the spirit of patriotism by promoting responsible citizenship and a love of and loyalty to the Knights' respective countries through active membership in local Fourth Degree groups called assemblies. Fourth Degree members must retain their membership as Third Degree members in the local council to remain in good standing.
Certain members of the Fourth Degree serve as honor guards at civic and religious functions, an activity which has brought worldwide recognition to the Knights of Columbus organization.
These pages are from the following website.
http://www.kofc.org/un/cmf/resources/SKReport2005.pdf