St. Mark Council News Official Publication Knights of Columbus Council 12654 St. Mark Catholic Church, Huntersville, NC June 2006 http:/www.kofcncstmark.org

The end of our 2005-2006 Fraternal Year has arrived (almost). Whew! We just finished our second fish fry. It was piggy backed with a special welcome for Belarusian children and a family movie hosted by the Boy Scouts. Monsignor Richard, Father Reid, Deacon Louis (and family) and Deacon Rick were there as well. This is another example of why the St. Mark Knights of Columbus will continue to be recognized as a viable sponsor of our Church, our parishioners, and our priests.

I wish all of our St. Mark Brothers a healthy, happy and fun-filled summer. Try to find time this summer to attend our meetings. Because of the July 4 holiday, our July Council meeting is Monday, July 10. Our family outing this summer will be an evening baseball game in Kannapolis on Saturday, July 15. (More details below in the newsletter.) I hope to see many of you there.

Let’s start thinking about how to make the 2006-2007 Fraternal Year the most successful ever for St. Mark Council. Put on your thinking caps. We are hoping for creative ideas to increase the income from our fundraising activities. The more we make, the more we can give away. See you all next year (next KofC year, that is.)

Ed Keller, Grand Knight

Calendar
July 5, 7:30 p.m.	St. Mark Council Leadership Meeting
July 10, 7:30 p.m.	St. Mark Council Business Meeting
July 15, 7:05 p.m.	Kannapolis Intimidators vs. Savannah Sand Gnats (St. Mark Summer family outing)
August 7, 7:30 p.m.	St. Mark Council Business Meeting

June 5, 2006 Meeting Notes

Grand Knight’s Report

· GK Ed Keller thanked all Council members for a successful 2005-2006 Fraternal Year. (The 2006-2007 Fraternal Year begins July 1).

· Keller and Deputy Grand Knight Dick Christian attended the NC KofC C State Convention the previous weekend and learned that St. Mark Council was one of only a handful of Councils throughout North Carolina to win the Distinguished Council Award.

· Although St. Mark officer positions are filled for 2006-2007, Keller mentioned that many committee directorships and other leadership positions are available including membership, council, community and health, respect life, public relations, and council webmaster. He asked Council members to step up to fill the shoes of some of the long-time directors who have moved or who can no longer devote the time to the position.

· The St. Mark Council Leadership Team approved an expenditure of $200 the week before in response to a request by Brother Pat Jackson for funds to help spruce up the Ada Jenkins Center in Davidson. Jackson needed an immediate answer, so the matter was not brought before the entire Council.

Treasurer’s Report: Chip Marshall reported that St. Mark Council had $12,099 in the bank as of May 31. Income for May was $11,842, and expenses were $11,395.

Report of Auditors and Trustees: Tom McGahey reported that planning is underway for the NC KofC Mid-year convention June 5-7, 2007. St. Mark Council will be the official Host Council for the Convention, which will be located at the University Hilton in Charlotte. McGahey said more details will be forthcoming about volunteer opportunities.

Council will pay for Baptismal Font: A motion was approved that St. Mark Council pay for a baptismal font to be located to the left of the Altar in the Monsignor Kerin Family Center. The cost is $1,650. (Read Chancellor’s Report below for more detail.) The Council’s donation of the funds will be noted on a plaque that will be attached to the font.

Chancellor’s Report: Chancellor Jim Lotito explained that the Stations of the Cross on display in the Family Center are original lithograph paintings from earlier in the century. They were salvaged from a Catholic Church in the Northeast and located on eBay. Lotito also reported that Monsignor Bellow has decided to purchase an ornate iron baptismal font dating from the 1930s. The cost is $1,650.

Membership

· A First Degree was not held in May because of uncertain availability of some of the members of the First Degree team. A new date was discussed, but has not been confirmed. Grand Knight Ed Keller also said he would contact the St. Therese First Degree Team about available dates.

· Brothers Luigi LaPietra and Andy Kopchinski volunteered to fill currently open positions on the First Degree Team.

Church: Sergio Miranda reported on a volunteer opportunity with The Amazing Maize September 14-17 at Rural Hill Farms. The Council will earn $1,000 each day if 10 volunteers per day can be provided. Volunteers will work five hours, and be provided lunch.

Family: Andy Kopchinski has organized a family outing for St. Mark Knights at a Kannapolis Intimidators baseball game at 7 p.m. on Saturday, July 15. Stay tuned for more details about food that will be provided by the ballpark and included in the per-person price for Knights. The Intimidators will host the Savannah Sand Gnats.

Lowe’s volunteers thanked: Bill Pugh thanked the 21 St. Mark KofC volunteers who drove nearly 200 total hours at Lowe’s May 19-28. The effort raised approximately $1,700 for charity. Among the volunteer St. Mark drivers were (not a complete list) Pugh, Ray Marr, Ed Keller, Dan Cedrone, Barry McCaa, Mike Leahy, Andy Sikso, Tom Donahue, Dick Christian, Richard Clancey, Dick Mahoney, Ed Keller, Dick Driscoll, John O’Neill and Tom Sawicki.

Boy Scouts given $500: A motion was presented and passed to provide St. Mark Boy Scouts with $500 toward operating expenses. Brother Jim Conrad, the Scoutmaster, presented information about the growth of the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts at St. Mark. Funds are needed for camping and cooking equipment.

St. Mark Family Festival: Deputy Grand Knight Dick Christian reported that St. Mark will hold a Family Festival on Saturday, September 23, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. The emphasis will be community building. Among the highlights will be an outdoor 5:30 p.m. Mass, ethnic foods (as well as traditional American foods) and outdoor family games and activities. The Family Festival coincides with the kickoff of the annual St. Mark Stewardship Drive.

New Business

• Motion approved to donate $500 for Vacation Bible School t-shirts

• Motion approved to provide parishioner Juliette Lee with $500 to help pay for an upcoming trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan to visit with Sisters of the Mother Mary of the Eucharist, a Dominican Order. Juliette is in the process of discerning a possible vocation.

The Power of Prayer

Mk 11: 24 - "I give you my word, if you are ready to believe that you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer, it shall be done for you.”

Please keep the following individuals and families in your prayers

• Joan McDavid, wife of former St. Mark Knight Jim McDavid

• Brother of Parishioner Randy Balot

• Trevor Hehn, who was deployed to Iraq in early January
• All relatives of St. Mark Knights serving in the Armed Forces
• All U.S. Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines serving in Iraq and Afghanistan

Council Contact Information
Grand Knight	Ed Keller	655-8190	edwardkeller@bellsouth.net
Past Grand Knight	Tom McGahey	947-9334	tommcgahey@bellsouth.net
Deputy Grand Knight	Dick Christian	875-1258	dchristian@insouthinsurance.com
Chaplain	Msgr R. Bellow		richard_bellow@yahoo.com
Chancellor	Jim Lotito	948-9015	jllotito@bellsouth.net
Recorder	Mike Mullen	948-7484	michaelamullen@bellsouth.net
Treasurer	Chip Marshall	875-8811	chip.marshall@adelphia.net
Financial Secretary	Jim Bossert	655-8852	sixsigmaguy@aol.com
Warden	Kevin Csehoski	947-2856	kcsehoski@bellsouth.net
Advocate	Marty Brennan	896-6441	Marty.brennan@mmbrennanlaw.com
Inside Guard	Bruce Milstead	892-4578
Outside Guard	James Carter	948-8506	jcarterjr@adelphia.net
First Year Trustee	Tom McGahey	947-9334	tommcgahey@bellsouth.net
Second Year Trustee	Barry McCaa	895-2424	bemccaa@yahoo.com
Third Year Trustee	Jack Clements	992-0789	jacknnan@adelphia.net
Membership Director	Mark Conter	947-8604	markAconter@aol.com
Community/Health Dir	Open
Operation LAMB Dir	Richard Clancey	609-4400
Council Director	Barry McCaa	895-2424	bemccaa@yahoo.com
Family Director	Andy Kopchinsky	655-0949	76triumph@adelphia.net
Youth Director	Sean McSweeney	948-5543	sean.mcsweeney@fedex.com
Church Director	Sergio Miranda	395-9802	smiranda@carolina.rr.com
Pro-life Director	Tony Gagliardo	439-0533	ajgags@aol.com
Insurance Field Agent	Rick Keyser
Coord, Parish Rndtble	Bob Murphy	947-7870	ram316@bellsouth.net
KofC Building Director	Jim Lotito	948-9015	jllotito@bellsouth.net
Web Master	Oscar Bernardo	894-9290	ocbernardo@earthlink.net
Web Master	Chris O’Keefe	988-1655	sandcritta@adelphia.net
Newsletter Editor	Mike Mullen	948-7484	michaelamullen@bellsouth.net
Lecturer	Open
Public Relations Dir	Open