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Active in Guttenberg: Knights of Columbus serve with charity and fraternity

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From left are Matt Esser, Lee Stroschein, and Rich Davis preparing for a recent Knights of Columbus fundraiser in Brinkman Hall. The next pancake breakfast will be held in March. (Photo submitted)

By Molly Moser

Editor’s note: This story is one in an ongoing series to highlight local groups and organizations that welcome members of the community and enhance our city’s culture. If you would like your group to be featured, please contact The Guttenberg Press. 

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A large group of Catholic men gather monthly as brothers in the Knights of Columbus. The Guttenberg, Garnavillo and North Buena Vista members number nearly 200 and exist to serve with charity, unity, fraternity and patriotism. 

The Knights of Columbus have approximately 1.2 million members worldwide. The organization started in 1881, when Father Michael J. McGivney began to notice hostility in Connecticut toward immigrants, particularly of Irish descent. “Also at that time, if somebody got hurt or killed at work, which was often the case in those days, the family was usually left without the sole breadwinner,” explained Grand Knight of the local council, Robert Kies.  “Father McGivney saw this and said, ‘Let’s create a fraternal order within our parish to help these widows and orphans.’ That’s how the Knights of Columbus first got its start.”

From there the organization grew. Little by little, parishes started their own councils. During World War I, the Knights of Columbus became known worldwide for their KC huts, set up in training bases and behind the lines for recreation and refreshments. “Their famous motto was, ‘Everyone welcome, everything free,’” explained Kies. “At the time, a lot of service organizations wouldn’t allow certain people to partake because of race, creed, color, or what have you. But the Knights of Columbus said it doesn’t matter, everyone is welcome. They just wanted to help.”

The local council officially formed Dec. 18, 1955 and now consists of members from St. Mary’s in Guttenberg, St. Joseph’s in Garnavillo, and Immaculate Conception in North Buena Vista. While there are many young members, some who joined as soon as they turned 18, Kies estimates the average age of the group at mid- fifties to sixty. Eighty group members have been Knights for over 30 years. Members must be practicing Catholic men 18 years and older.

“I’m relatively new to the Knights of Columbus,” Kies told The Press. “I was asked by a member when I was leaving church one morning if I’d ever considered becoming a member of the Knights of Columbus. My father was a member, but I guess I never really thought about it until I was asked.” Kies attended a meeting and joined the group in 2009, shortly after moving to the Guttenberg area. 

There are four degrees of Knight in the organization. Members must pass through a ceremony to advance, and each degree corresponds with one of the group’s founding principles - charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism. During ceremonies, members are asked to think about their involvement in the Knights of Columbus, as well as their personal connection to faith, family, and parish community.

“Advancement is self-starting,” said Kies. “You can go from first degree to fourth degree within six months to a year if you want. It’s all determined by how much you wish to commit to the Knights of Columbus.”

Kies himself spent one year as a first degree member, then went through second and third degree ceremonials. He served as the group recorder before following Marvin Althoff as Grand Knight in June of 2015. Kies plans to become a fourth degree Knight at the state convention in 2017, which will be held in Dubuque. “Fourth degree knights are the people you see in capes and hats. They’re known as the ceremonial knights, and the ceremony to become a 4th degree knight is a little more involved,” Kies told The Press. 

During monthly meetings, the local council discusses plans for upcoming events and makes decisions about charitable donations. Recently, the group helped fund a handicap accessible path from River Park Drive to the north band shelter in the park. The council also takes a turn operating the Bender’s food stand in the summer and hosts six to seven breakfasts at St. Mary’s each year. Funds from those events are given to St. Mary Immaculate Conception School in Guttenberg. Annual tootsie roll sales are used to send G&G athletes to the Special Olympics. 

There are 1.8 million Knights of Columbus members worldwide and the group donates millions of volunteer hours and dollars to charities. During the 2014-15 school year, the Knights of Columbus gave over 1.6 million dollars in scholarships to 519 students worldwide who wrote essays as applications. Most recipients are the children of knights or knights working toward Bachelor degrees at Catholic colleges and universities. 

“A big part of the Knights of Columbus is the insurance program,” Kies told The Press. The Knights of Columbus insurance program helps achieve their primary mission, to protect families from the financial ruin caused by the death of the breadwinner. Today, the organization has grown to include top-rated life insurance, long-term care insurance and retirement products with more than 99 billion dollars of insurance in force. The Knights of Columbus was recognized by the Ethisphere Institute in 2014 and 2015 as the World’s Most Ethical Company. 

Jan. 31 was a busy day for area Knights as they hosted a pancake breakfast at Brinkman Hall in Guttenberg and the district competition of the annual free throw contest for youth ages nine to 14 in the high school gymnasium. It was also the fifth Sunday of the month, when the Knights sponsor the Living Rosary. A large rosary made by the Knights themselves is spread down the aisles before church, and parishioners are asked to hold a bead and speak a prayer at their turn. “It’s a way to get the congregation more involved,” said Kies.

If you’re interested in joining but haven’t been asked by a member, the local Knights of Columbus council meets monthly on the first Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the basement of the old St. Mary's school building.

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