Blog

June 2, 2020

Grand Knight      

Hello Brother Knights,

I will start this Newsletter with Monsignor Makarewicz comments:

Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to contribute to the Newsletter. Here is something to include if possible:

My brother knights and ladies, I understand how difficult it has been for all of us without the comforting presence of our friends and colleagues in our daily lives. This time of pandemic is helping us focus on the essentials and realize that we must never take the blessings and privileges we are accustomed to for granted.

Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church is carrying out its mission. The sacraments continue to be offered and the Gospel is still preached. And we are growing stronger as a community through the prayerful activities of our families in the home and our conscientious respect for what is needed to safeguard the health and well-being of everyone. Our parish continues to operate under the guidelines of our bishop, Shawn McKnight, federal recommendations from the CDC, and specific state and local regulations in force for public health. This means that activities will continue to look different for now and at least the next several weeks.

Bishop McKnight has issued several decrees and instructions which are careful to follow. Thankfully, we can now have public worship. However, we still must keep social distancing masks are required, and there are limits to the number of people who can be in Church or other spaces. Mass and other devotions are one of them. Currently the CDC strongly encourages anyone 65 and older to minimize interaction with others. The Diocese requests that folks who are 60 and people in other higher risk categories stay away from public gatherings.

How I am working this out is that ministers and volunteers like ushers and EMs and readers all need to be under 60. We have social distancing and separation in place and will limit the number of people who are allowed in. (That is a state and local requirement). Since most of our volunteers are over 60, I have not scheduled group meetings so as not to put any requirement on folks older than 60. Other activities may be allowed, but again, accompanied by social distancing, masks and cautions to folks at high risk categories.

Aside from specific liturgies and devotions and meetings with parish staff, all pastoral, educational and social activity that requires people to gather together on Church property is still suspended. Commissions, faith formation groups, and public meetings are still suspended. The parish has a professional Zoom account that can be used by all parish-sponsored groups for teleconferences. We are not able to have dinners, luncheons, or host games or parties. Until the state eases its social distancing requirements, this will continue to be enforced. Additionally, hand hygiene and facial coverings are mandatory on Church property. The May 28, 2020 order from the Missouri Department of Health has extended the special requirements to protect our communities from the corona virus until June 15. https://health.mo.gov/living/healthcondiseases/communicable/novel-coronavirus/pdf/economic-reopening61-15.pdf

I appreciate all the assistance the Knights have provided for our parish and especially those in need during these last months. We still need to be conscientious and cautious to ensure the health of all. Let us all continue to pray for patience, strength, and guidance forward so that our mission of bringing Christ into the world may continue.

Thank you, Monsignor, for your comments.

As your Grant Knight here is my monthly update:

Congratulations and welcome to our newly elected officers. Thanks for your willingness to serve in these positions. We especially thank John Akscin, Jonathan Mudd and Nathan Otto for stepping up to the plate and accepting the positions as Warden, Life Director and Community Director. Also, to Larry Bayliss for accepting Financial Secretary for another term of 3 years.

The Virtual Installation of Officers will be on June 16^th, 2020 at 7 PM. All members will be invited to listen in using their phone by calling xxxxxxxxxx US (Chicago), except the officers, they will be on video. Kelly has set this up using the Zoom app. Monsignor will start the meeting. You will receive an email with a meeting ID:XXXX and Password: xxxx, just click on it and it will bring you into the meeting using audio or video. District Deputy David Growth will perform the Installation ceremony. This will be David’s last function as District Deputy. Thank you for all that you have done to support our Parish and Knights council the last 8 years.

Please continue to let Monsignor Makarewicz, the Office Support Staff Kelly Hamrin & Mary Wagemann and Choir Director Steve Jannetti and Maintenance John Riley know how much they are appreciated and to thank them for their ongoing support during this difficult time. All masses are being streamlined every day except for Monday. These really help to bond us all together as a Parish community. Please continue to pray for our Bishops, Monsignors, Priests, Deacons and Seminarians. There continues to be many acts of kindness and thoughtfulness from our Parish community, Knights and Lady Knights. They have been helping other by making food and delivering food to the homebound or sick, calling and checking on others, providing food for Hope House and Blessing bags. Thank each of you for your acts of Charity, Unity and Fraternity.

Please welcome our newest council member Billy Hilt to Council 9273 when you see him. Billy and his wife Patricia are retired and go to our church. They moved to the lake about 2 years ago.

Our council continues to receive donations for Brother Knight John Heinz memorial fund. The current amount is $445.00. The latest donations were from Michael & Denise Bury for $20.00 and Patrick & Teresa O’Neill for $20.00. I talked with Tom, the son and his family is agreeable that we may use the donations for the wheelchair fund. Thank you, cards were sent to the family and their friends for their gracious donations.

Our Council also received a check in the amount of $1,000 in honor of Gunther from Charlie & Mary Beth O’Reilly Family Foundation Springfield, Mo. 65804. They read Gunther’s story in the May 2020 issue of the Knights of Columbus magazine and it touched them in such a special way, that they made this special donation to the Knights of Columbus. Gunther has agreed for our council to use this donation for end of the year charities that need our support.

Congratulations, to Derek Hooper who received his Order of Deacon on Saturday May 30, 2020. There was an exceptional article about Deacon Hooper in The Catholic Missourian Newspaper on May 14^th. He hopes to be ordained a priest of the dioceses in 2021. Please remember to pray for Derek and the Priesthood.

He loves his baseball, especially the Texas Rangers. He enjoys reading and watching science fiction, especially “Star Trek”. He has a brother, Father Greer who is a priest of the Diocese of Wichita, Ks. I will post this article on our Knights display board. Our Knights Council 9273 is currently sponsoring Derek as a Seminarian.

The Virtual Fourth Degree Exemplification was Online Tuesday evening June 2, 2020 at 7:00 pm. Our council had 3 candidates who became Sir Knights with Assembly 2111. They are Steve Jannetti, Jonathan Mudd and Nathan Otto.  Congratulations to each of you, we are all proud and happy for you.

All Knights of Columbus country breakfast for June has been cancelled.

Our Council Officers continues to host our monthly planning meetings “virtually” online by using the Zoom app, as we discuss monthly and yearly requirements. It has worked well for us. This month’s meeting was on the 1st of June at 7 PM.  

If you have not taken the time to review the Knights of Columbus Web Site, please do so. Charles Cassmeyer and Mary Wagemann have done an outstanding job on this. It is a showcase for other councils to follow. The way it works, is to go to the Parish website and click on Parish Life then click on Organizations and that will take you to Knights of Columbus website.

Special thanks to George and Coleen Parise who have taken food to Hope House weekly during this coronavirus pandemic. Also, to Don Koch for Membership and Retention Committee. Don’s efforts included getting three brother knights to complete their 2nd & 3^rd Degrees to full Knighthood and three brother knights to complete their 4^th Degree to become a Sir Knight. He has also recruited 1 new member in May, Billy Hilt. Outstanding job.

The next Council Officers Planning Meeting will be on the 6 July 2020 at 7 PM possibly using Zoom or meeting in Bestgen Hall.

Please continue to pray for our Country, Monsignor, Parish Community, Families, and all those who are in the Medical Profession, and First Responders. Also pray for your Brother Knights, our Faithful departed Brother Knights, Lady Knights, and all our sick members. (Monsignor Wilber’s, John Weidler, Gary Kelly, Jack Callahan, Darren Donley, Frank Medved, Louis Noland, John Akscin, Gary Littrell, Arnold Sandbothe, Clark Gruninger, Rusti Forest and Karen Pither, Lucille Needham and any other members that I have failed to mention).

Thanks for what you do for our Parish and our Community. Peace be with all and God Bless.

Gary Chaput

Grand Knight