Year 29 --- Number 5 – April-May 2015

ascensioncouncil9285.org

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GRAND KNIGHT'S REPORT

Brother Knights: Please take time and mark your calendar with many of the important dates in this newsletter. A lot of effort goes into creating a number of events that are intended to benefit our Community as a whole. This includes, but is not limited to, our Council, Our Parish and our local civil community. Since our scope is all encompassing there is always an activity that can match your interest and time availability. While it is difficult to compete with ESPN, Netflix and all the social media available, we do offer Christian fellowship with a common goal. Please consider exercising faith through your works on Project Mend-A-House on April 11

th, Pancake Breakfast on April

19th to support the Honduras Mission Trip, Bread

Wrapping every Wednesday, support serving coffee and donuts after Mass, and especially KOVAR collections May 30

th and 31

st. I encourage you to continue your

support and continue to make a difference.

Grand Knight Patrick McKeown (703) 791-6050 McKeowPD@yahoo.com

BIRTHDAYS The following Ascension Council knights will be celebrating April or May birthdays: Richard Brosh Harlan Cashdollar Tony Catabui Thomas Conti John Cunha Father Devan Michael DeVera Ryan Devlin Curtis Donato Robert Duggan Robert Frisbee Joe Gerhart Terrence Gregory Brian Incheck Todd Ketch William Klug Jeffrey Limjoco Robert Marks Mark Noblit Neil Pellegrino Joseph Penning Rick Picon David Priester James Pritchert Bryan Roberts, PGK Norberto Sese Daniel Valascho David White

John Woods

DEGREE SCHEDULE

The district degrees (1st and 2

nd) and state

degrees (3rd

and 4th) scheduled for the

remaining days of the fraternal year are:

1st – April 9

th – Ascension Council

1st – May 6

th – JPI Council

2nd

– District 12 – May 12th

– JP1 Council

1st – June 16

th – Seton Council

MEMBERSHIP ANNIVERSARIES

The following Ascension Council knights will be celebrating their membership anniversaries in April or May (years as a knight shown): Donald Fullem (60) Ray Bazan (44) Jack Kapp (43) Daniel Varroney (34) David Priester (33) Joe Mitchell (32) Jeff Befumo, PGK (29) John Bunya (29) Ron DeSpirito (29) William McCabe (29) Joe Marshall (27) Thomas Broderick (26) Alfred Doktor (26) Bryan Roberts, PGK (20) Lee Bennett (16) Christopher Potvin (16) Robert Purdy (16) David White (15) Michael Saller, Jr. (12) John Brady, PGK (10) Richard Haney (10) Rick Johnson, PGK (10) John Woods (8) James Johnson (5) William Hardy (4) Joe Nani-Tome (4) Guy Guiffre (3) Jason Leicht (3) Jacob Daniels (2) Tony Anakor (1) Ryan Devlin (1) George DiCarlo (1) Michael Esquig (1) Brian Nix (1)

Kevin Thibeault (1)

INSIDE THIS ISSUE BIRTHDAYS ................................................................................ 1 CALENDAR ................................................................................. 8-10 DEGREE SCHEDULE.................................................................. 1 EDITORS CORNER ..................................................................... 7 FAMILY OF THE MONTH ............................................................ 7 FIELD AGENT ............................................................................. 6-7 GRAND KNIGHT'S REPORT ....................................................... 1 KNIGHT OF THE MONTH ........................................................... 7 MEMBERSHIP ANNIVERSARIES ............................................... 1 PROGRAM DIRECTOR’S REPORT / COMMITTEES .................. 2-5 2014-2015 COUNCIL LEADERSHIP POSITIONS ........................ 11

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PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Now for a recap of events in February and March looking forward to April, May and June:

Deputy Grand Knight and Program Director Lee Bennett (703) 590-5025 LBennett39@gmail.com

Council

The Director’s objective for Council activities is to increase fraternalism among members, to provide enjoyment to members and their families, to ensure service to the brotherhood and advancement in the Order's degrees.

First Degree A first degree was held on March 4th at JP 1 council. Participants are shown below. Standing with DD Bob Szerszynski, PGK Bryan Roberts, GK Patrick McKeown and three JP1 knights are our two new first degree knights Garrett Uecker and Nick Pardi.

Memoriam Brother Knight John Samuel Angelotta passed into eternal life on January 21, 2015. He was a very active member of both Ascension Council and Bishop Flaherty Assembly until he and his wife moved to Fredericksburg upon his retirement several years ago. Brother John was always very active in supporting all of the activities of the Council and Sacred Heart Catholic Church. He enjoyed supporting these activities but his favorite was the Pancake Breakfast because it enabled him to interact with both youth and adults of the parish.

John realized very quickly that one of the major limitations associated with the breakfast was that we had no kitchen in the Church Hall to cook in. This deficiency was the spark he needed to generate his interest in

correcting this problem and this meant constructing a kitchen and since he was a retired field engineer this uniquely qualified him to become intimately involved in the project. A team of Brother Knights was quickly formed and he was allocated the task of drafting the construction drawings, both construction and utilities.

When time came to start construction John handled all of the Prince William County construction permits and accomplished this in a very professional manner. The resultant kitchen has supported many of the Parish Ministries since its completion and will continue for many years into the future. Brother John, you will be greatly missed by all of us but we know you are in the loving care of our blessed Lord. May God bless and care for you for an eternity.

115th Virginia State Annual Meeting This Fraternal Year’s Annual Meeting of the Virginia State Council, otherwise known as ‘The Convention”, will take place from Friday May 1

st to Sunday May 3

rd at the

DoubleTree Hotel in Richmond/Midlothian. The hotel has undergone a complete renovation and if you have attended past State Conventions or 4

th Degree

Exemplifications, you will remember the hotel as the Holiday Inn Koger Center.

The Knights are planning to host an exciting weekend built around the business meetings filled with a great golf outing, a terrific Friday night program, and ladies luncheon along with great food all weekend long shared with great friends!! Full details can be obtained from the Grand Knight.

Council Meetings We will continue to pray the rosary prior to our business meetings starting at 7 PM.

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The council will host a 1st degree on Thursday April 9

th.

The planning meeting for April will be held on the third Thursday, April 16

th.

The business and planning meetings will be swapped in May. The business meeting on May 28

th will feature

council elections for the 2016-2017 fraternal year.

Church

The Director’s objective for Church activities is to provide council involvement in, service to, and/or increased council commitment to our Church, clergy and religious, to enrich the spiritual involvement of individual members in their Church and its activities, and to promote vocations to the religious life.

Fraternal Benefits Night Special thanks to JP1 Council for hosting the Fraternal Benefit Night and Brother Thom Harrington for coordinating. There was a great showing by both councils to hear about Estate Planning. Estate Planning is NOT just for the rich...it is for everyone and a will is not enough. From the seminar: "Estate Planning Defined: I want to control my property while I'm alive, take care of myself and my loved ones if I become disabled, and give what I have to whom I want, the way I want, and when I want and, if I can, I want to save every last tax dollar, professional fee, and court cost possible." Contact Brother Thom Harrington for more information.

Fat Tuesday Gumbo Night Due to a large snowstorm that hit the area a day earlier, Ascension council’s annual Fat Tuesday Gumbo Night for the parish was cancelled this year with energy diverted to the council Fish Fry (see next article). We will try again in 2016.

Fish Fry

Freezing temperatures did not dampen the spirits or participation in the Knights 3rd Annual Fish Fry. More than 20 Knights volunteered to assist in the set-up, preparation, cooking, greeting, serving, and clean-up for over 100 church members to join together in a Friday evening meatless meal. All net proceeds from the event were donated to Catholic Relief Services Operation Rice Bowl.

It was a great example of the Knights pulling together for wonderful fellowship and service to our church community. Special thanks go to Brother John Keast who coordinated the event and a host of other Knights who contributed their time and talents. A great time was had by all and very positive feedback was received from everyone who came out to eat during Lent. We look forward to making the event even bigger and better in 2016.

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Pancake Breakfast The next pancake breakfast will be held on Sunday, April 19

th. We will serve after the first three Masses on that

day starting preparations around 7 AM. Proceeds will support the next Honduras Mission Trip.

Clergy Appreciation Dinner Our priests and deacons will be our honorees for the annual Clergy Appreciation Dinner scheduled for April 25

th beginning at 6 PM in the Parish Hall, downstairs in

the church building. All parishioners are invited to attend the catered buffet dinner that includes refreshments, appetizers, main course and dessert at a cost of $30 per person. Please RSVP by April 20

th (Monday) to PGK

Bryan Roberts (703) 732-0165 or email, bryanr_excalibur@verizon.net.

Coffee and Donuts We are serving coffee and donuts after all Sunday Masses on the first Sunday of each month.

Roses for Life On the first and third Sunday of each month when there is one or more baptisms, at 1:30 PM we present a rose to each mother. Contact Jack Kapp to assist or for more information.

Community

The Director’s objective for Community activities is to increase the council’s awareness of its life within the community and to promote council as well as individual involvement in the community.

Project Mend a House Project Mend-A-House is inviting the Knights to come and lend a hand and help out neighbors in need at the Spring Spruce Up on April 11

th. If you are able to lend a

hand on the 11th or have additional questions please let

the DGK know as soon as possible

Both general and skilled labor skills are needed. We select projects that are suitable for a variety of abilities and interests: everything from yard work and painting to carpentry and plumbing. They will have a couple of their core volunteers acting as team leaders on the projects.

They are in the process of finalizing the projects for the day. They will be throughout Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park. During the week of April 6

th, they will send out an email detailing what project

each volunteer will be working on, who the team leaders are and what is involved.

It is a one day event. It will most likely start around 10 AM and end around 4 PM.

They have a both a general liability (1 million dollars) and a supplemental accidental insurance policy. The accidental insurance policy picks up wherever a volunteer’s medical insurance leaves off in the event of an injury.

VDOT Cleanup Our next VDOT road cleanup will take place on Saturday, April 25

th. Meet at the Sacred Heart parking

lot at 9 AM. After the cleanup, you are welcome to eat a late breakfast / early lunch at IHOP. Contact PGK Tom Zum Brunnen for details.

Food Pantry Bread Wrapping We are in need of continual help each Wednesday to wrap bread donated from Panera Bread. Your work supports the Saturday food pantry. PGK Jerry Michonski is the lead. If you can support please contact jerryandgiulia.michonski@verizon.net (or select his name from the officer's list on the UKnight site).

Youth

The Director’s objective for Youth activities is to provide opportunities for all youth to become personally involved and committed to programs for improvement of their physical, social, and moral development.

Girls CYO Basketball Team

The Sacred Heart Girls basketball team competed for their third season in the NVJCYO league and ended with their best record by placing second in their division.

The girls participated in division 3 of a 5 division field and performed well through wins and losses. Two

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players have participated all 3 seasons, five for 2 seasons and four first time players this season.

These 11 players quickly formed a team and worked on everything from basic ball handling skills to beating a press. Many of the players will be attending basketball camp together this summer and look forward to the next season.

Players and parents are grateful to The Knights of Columbus for sponsoring the team which encourages girls to play sports.

The following Knights have Daughters participating on the team: John Damato, Erik Rosado, Joe Gerhart

Boys CYO Basketball Team

Sacred Heart has had a boys CYO basketball program for four years and the Knights have sponsored the program since its inception by allowing the boys & girls teams to fundraise through the Knights pancake breakfast program. That fundraising opportunity is key to making the CYO basketball program affordable to the Sacred Heart families that participate.

The 8th grade boys team has 10 players. Most of the

team has played together for three years. The boys play a fast pace motion offense and tough man to man defense that led the team to an undefeated 10 – 0 season. The CYO program ages out at 8th grade so this was the last year for the boys team.

The following Knights have boys on the team, McKeown, Gerhart, Keast, Miller & Gibbons.

Family The Director’s objective for Family Activities is to involve the entire family in the activities of the Knights of Columbus, to strengthen family life, and to care for widows and children of deceased members.

Wives Appreciation Event On Sunday May 17

th we will attend the 10:45AM Mass

together and then go to the Montclair Country Club for a delicious Brunch. The final details are being worked out.

Council Picnic Mark your calendars for the Annual Council picnic. It will be held on Sunday, June 28

th at the home of PGK Tony

Bado and his wife Molly. More details will be announced at the June business meeting.

Building the Domestic Church Because in the beginning of creation God gave the commandments of work, we want to harmonize work and family life.

Through work, parents help to meet their needs and the needs of their children. They fulfill their roles as guardians and providers. While the need to work does take away from time spent as a family, it also offers the opportunity for parents to set an example of commitment to support the family and of working together with others to get a job accomplished.

Children can also learn from work through the simple responsibilities of performing chores — feeding the pets, taking out the garbage, washing dishes, etc. They learn they are responsible for their own actions, how to be a part of a team and the satisfaction that comes with labor well done. Family projects develop teamwork among your family members by working together to complete a project in your parish or community. Create a garden for Mary or a special statue location, visit local cemeteries in spring to assist with a clean up, or schedule a time to pray the rosary together as a family.

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KOVAR

Gentlemen:

In the coming months, I will be calling on my brother Knights to assist with collecting for KOVAR.

When I was first asked to take on this event, my first thought was of my father.

I was in third or fourth grade when I went with my father to collect for KOVAR. Like many other young people I often wondered just what the Knights did and why was my father always volunteering with other Knights. We spent a Saturday morning talking and discussing KOVAR, the Knights of Columbus and what it means to give back to your community and to the less fortunate.

That Saturday I learned allot about the Knights, my church and see my father in action truly giving back to the community. We also talked about other things such as school sports and what it was like for my dad growing up. What I cherish the most was the time I spent with my father, just the two of us catching up on life. That would become our time when dad and I “hung out” and hopefully made a community a better place.

We still talk about those times, the funny things that happened, the neighbors we saw and the way people opened their hearts and wallets. To this day when I see KOVAR I think of my father.

Gentlemen, I encourage you to sign up and make this a family event. Let your children see you in action, spend the time with them and give them a better understanding of what it is to be a Knight. Moms are always welcomed. In later years my mom would pick up a shift with a friend and make it an afternoon and catch up with her.

In our hectic life style it is a golden opportunity to enjoy the time with your family and give back to our community.

KOVAR collections will be held on Saturday May 30th

and Sunday May 31st at Food Lion, ABC Stores and Ace

Hardware. When the shifts are communicated, please take the time to sign up for a shift or more if you can.

Thank you,

John Damato

FIELD AGENT

We Stand Strong On Ethical Ground Some people believe that ethics in business is a contradiction in terms. They think that in order to be profitable, a company and its leaders must abandon morality and embrace the dark, greedy side that they see so often in the news and in movies.

At the Knights of Columbus, we know this isn’t true. A business can be both ethical and successful. We are. As a Catholic organization, we understand the value and importance of our core beliefs and the original mission of Venerable Father Michael J. McGivney. In fact, much of the strength and financial security we provide to members and their families can be attributed to our ethical, moral standards.

More than 96 percent of Knights who buy our life insurance keep it, year in and year out. The Order takes this commitment to our members very seriously. This means carefully planning when it comes time to invest. Our professional staff researches all transactions to insure that they fall in line with Catholic values. If a transaction makes them uncomfortable, they don’t make it.

“We exclude any company engaged in activity that conflicts with Catholic moral teaching: companies directly involved in abortion, contraception, human cloning, embryonic stem cell research, for-profit health care that pays for any of these, or pornography,” said Supreme Knight Carl Anderson. “There are many companies in the pharmaceutical and communications industries that would undoubtedly provide excellent returns for us, but which are not in our portfolio because they engage in research and development or programming in ways that violate the sanctity or dignity of human life.”

In the end, the Knights of Columbus investment strategy is motivated by morality, not money. Yet, each year we remain profitable, increase our assets and stay dedicated to this vision that will keep the Order financially sound for generations to come.

But don’t just take our word for it. In 2015, for the second year in a row, the Knights of Columbus was named a “World’s Most Ethical Company” by the Ethisphere Institute. We were one of only two life insurance companies to earn the honor in 2014, and one of four this year.

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“Faithful Catholics have choices when buying life insurance,” said the Supreme Knight. “But they know that at the Knights of Columbus their policy is supplied by an insurer that shares their moral and ethical values and is guided in all of its investment and sales practices by those values.”

Contact me today to learn more about our products.

Field Agent Thom Harrington (703) 336-9020 www.ThomHarrington.com Thomas.Harrington@kofc.org

KNIGHT OF THE MONTH

The following Knights were recognized by the Grand Knight for their contributions to the council, parish and community:

The Knight of the Month for February was Jack Kapp.

FAMILY OF THE MONTH

The following families were recognized by the Grand Knight for their contributions to the council, parish and community.

The Family of the Month for January was the Barbara Marsh family.

The Family of the Month for February was Gordon Tassi and his wife.

EDITOR’S CORNER

Welcome to our latest newsletter. Happy Easter to all!

Our Facebook page is still active and is located at http://www.Facebook.com/council9285.

We now have a new website on UKnight with both public and private (member password access) areas. You can reach it at AscensionCouncil9285.org. We will keep the most up to date calendar here. Also, once an event has a chair assigned, you can easily contact him from the website calendar to volunteer or to ask a question. The event chair then has the ability to setup a list of those volunteering and communicate with that group directly through the website.

The other capability that UKnight provides is the ability to send emails to all members. If you have an email to send to everyone in the council or specific subsets such as all 2

nd Degree Knight, please send the email to our

Grand Knight or Deputy Grand Knight who will then send it out from UKnight.

I would like all future newsletter inputs no later than the Saturday AFTER the special planning meeting for the month. For the June/July 2015 issue I will need articles by Saturday, May 29

th. Please mark these dates on your

calendar and plan ahead to meet these deadlines.

The softcopy file of this newsletter, koc0415.pdf will be posted on our council UKnight website. Please email me at voyagerjoe@verizon.net with your contributions.

Disclaimer: the views and opinions in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of the KOC.

Editor Joe Marshall voyagerjoe@verizon.net

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April 2015

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May 2015

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June 2015

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Ascension Council 9285, 2013–2014-5 Fraternal Year Positions

Position Name Phone E-mail

Chaplain Father Mike Bazan 590.0030 MJBazan@comcast.net

Grand Knight Patrick McKeown 791.6050 McKeowPD@yahoo.com

Deputy Grand Knight Lee Bennett 590.5025 LBennett39@gmail.com

Program Director Lee Bennett 590.5025 LBennett39@gmail.com

Financial Secretary Jeff Befumo, PGK 791.6748 JBefumo@hotmail.com

Recorder Jack Kapp 303.7126 JKapp3@verizon.net

Lecturer Rick Crete, PGK 730.3869 RandPCrete@verizon.net

Treasurer Jerry Michonski, PGK 791.3148 JerryandGiulia.Michonski@verizon.net

Chancellor Doug Blair, PGK 583.5937 DougBlair@aol.com

Advocate John Damato 583.2628 JackRex@verizon.net

Warden Alex Blair 583.5937 AlexZenZoid@aol.com

Inside Guard Erik Rosado 794-0091 Erik.Rosado@gmail.com

Outside Guard Jason Terrell 590-4875 SecurityDog2009@live.com

3 Year Trustee Joe Fox 202.641.1882 JFoxHQ@yahoo.com

2 Year Trustee Bill Miller, PGK 794.8818 BillMiller72@gmail.com

1 Year Trustee John Brady, PGK 680.5135 JohnBrady20112@verizon.net

ARC Home Bryan Roberts, PGK 732.0165 BryanR_Excalibur@verizon.net

Church Director Carl Birchard 794.0529 CarlBirchard@gmail.com

Council Director

Donut Duty Rick Ontko 730.9453 SirRick54@gmail.com

Family Director Jack Kapp 303.7126 JKapp3@verizon.net

Community Director

Youth Director John Damato 583.2628 JackRex@verizon.net

Membership Director John Brady, PGK 680.5135 JohnBrady20112@verizon.net

Retention Director

Corn Hole Tourney Joe Gerhart 730-2323 Joe@Gerhartinc.com

Culture of Life Chair John Brady, PGK 680.5135 JohnBrady20112@verizon.net

Degree Team Leader Andy Baronavski, PGK 791.6420 Andy.Baronavski@verizon.net

Golf Chairman John Brady, PGK 680.5135 JohnBrady20112@verizon.net

Gumbo Night Patrick McKeown 791.6050 McKeowPD@yahoo.com

KCIC Chairman Lee Bennett 590.5025 LBennett39@gmail.com

KOVAR Chairman John Damato 583.2628 JackRex@verizon.net

Lenten Fish Fry John Keast 730-0165 JKeast@CGAGroup.com

Monte Carlo Night Rick Picon 897-8817 RPicon@Aribaasset.com

Newsletter Editor Joe Marshall 791.4119 VoyagerJoe@verizon.net

Pancake Breakfast Tom Zum Brunnen, PGK 794.8413 ThomasZB@comcast.net

Public Relations Chair

Roses For Life Jack Kapp 303.7126 JKapp3@verizon.net

Sub Sales Chairman Rick Johnson, PGK 791.2002 Stumpa10@comcast.net

Oktoberfest Chairman Bob Richard 794.9118 Bob.Richard@comcast.net

VDOT Road Cleanup Tom Zum Brunnen, PGK 794.8413 ThomasZB@comcast.net

Website Webmaster Joe Marshall 791.4119 VoyagerJoe@verizon.net

District Deputy Robert J. Szerszynski 994.6469 Szerszynski@Gmail.com

District Warden Brian Roberts, PGK 732.0165 BryanR_Excalibur@verizon.net

KOC Field Agent Thom Harrington 336.9020 Thomas.Harrington@kofc.org

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Knights of Columbus

12975 Purcell Road

Manassas, VA 20112

____________________

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

KNIGHTS

OF

COLUMBUS