Knights of Columbus
St. Pius X Council 12656
COUNCIL CHARTER
The St. Pius X Council 12656 of the Knights of Columbus was chartered on 29 March in the year 2000. March 29th is also celebrated by the Knights of Columbus as "Founders Day" the day on which this Catholic men's fraternal order was first established by Fr. Michael McGivney at New Haven, CT, in 1882. It was chartered as a fraternal order dedicated to the support of Catholic men of faith and to the support of their widows and orphans. The Knights of Columbus, sometimes referred to by Pope John Paul II as the "É strong right arm of the church," now totals over 1,700,000 members. It is the largest lay organization of Catholics in the world and is international in scope.
St.
Pius X Council started with a 46 charter members. It has since grown to about 120 members and looks forward to
sharing membership with other Catholic gentlemen of St. Pius X Parish and
surrounding parishes. Knights are
dedicated to supporting the priesthood and the Holy Father, the poor and
minorities, families and youths, the community and the America we love. Since the Council was chartered we have
donated thousands of dollars to parish stewardship, charities, seminarians,
scholarship, peace and justice activities and community-building within St.
Pius X and St. Juan Diego parishes.
We also have a strong fraternal side. Because of our work-together, play-together, pray-together
attitude we find that brother knights are our best friends. We urge any Catholic gentlemen who are
interested to ask us about membership. Interested men may contact one of
the St. Pius X knights as provided in the box on the last page of this
pamphlet.
PRINCIPLES
The principles of the K of C Order are Charity, Unity, Fraternity and Patriotism and the Four Degrees of the Order are manifested by those qualities. Charity, the love of our fellow man is manifested in a5 major number of our activities.
ACTIVITIES
Activities of the K of C are focused in five areas. Those areas are Church Activities, Council Activities, Community Activities, Family Activities and Youth Activities. Most activities are community building in nature although some are conceived to generate income for support of our charity, stewardship, family, youth and fraternal functions.
Examples of these various activity functions are as follows:
Church: Purchase of Community Center equipment, donations to
the parish for the lighted monument, priest vestments and the recently
constructed ambo for Mass readings.
Our activities also include an annual men's retreat and emphasize
prayer, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and parish and community service.
Council: Family/Council dinners, sports event attendance and fraternal celebrations and activities.
Community: Parish breakfasts, dinners, socials, crab feed galas, Adopt-a-road semi annual cleanup, annual Golf Tournament, and coffee & donut service among others.
Family: Family and couples dinners, an annual family picnic and annual scholarship grants. Family members often participate in various projects with their knights.
Youth:
Honors for Mass servers, Essay Contest for 8th graders
at St. Pius X School, ($ prizes), annual Freethrow Contest, and a Mt. Angel
Seminary tours and lunch for St. Pius X 8th grade & other
support for youth.
Charity: Contributions on the Council budget usually include such organizations as: Mt Angel Seminary, St. Vincent DePaul, St. Mary's Home for Boys, and other local and regional charities, Fr. Taaffe Foundation and others.
INSURANCE
The Knights' were originally organized to provide members with insurance to protect widows and orphans. The K of C Insurance program is one of four highest-rated insurance companies in the U.S. by Standard& Poor's and A.M. Best rating services. K of C Insurance can provide Life, Long-Term Care Insurance and Annuities. Although members are encouraged to consider this quality insurance, it is not a requirement for membership
COMMUNICATION
St. Pius X Council publishes a
monthly newsletter to inform members and the parish of our activities and
progress. It is called The
Knight's Navigator and there are usually copies
for the parish on the pamphlet rack table in the vestibule of St. Pius X
church. We also have an Internet
Website at knightsnorthwest.com