My Brothers and Sisters all:

Happy New Year to all!  Time flies when you’re having fun; it seems the Council year has just begun, but the year is half done.  Still, there is much to be done.  Let’s take that burst of energy we got from our Christmas celebrations and maintain momentum in all the wonderful programs we sponsor.   This is the time for succession planning.  Each DGK should be planning who will be his chairmen for the coming year.  You need to plan your year NOW.  You need to begin contacting your prospective chairmen NOW.  Your entire calendar should be laid out well before you assume office.   Remember the words of the Installation Ceremony.  “The peak of a pyramid is a solitary place. … The base of the pyramid supports the top. …The members who comprise the pyramid will support you if you demonstrate that you need and want their support and their company.”  NOW is the time to demonstrate that need and that desire for support.  In the same vein, each member should be prepared to respond to a call from the incoming Grand Knight to the extent possible given family and job responsibilities.

This is January, a time to celebrate life.   Remember to contact your elected representatives and let them know where you stand on pro-life questions.  You really do cast a vote if you’re just silent – one you don’t want to cast.  There are so many challenges, not just on abortion, but also on all the activities that threaten life from the time of conception until the time of natural death.  Sometimes, I’ve felt it futile to write, but write we must, for your voice does count; we are making headway.   Speak out.  Of course, please join us at the March for Life on January 22.  Our efforts since Roe v. Wade are finally bearing fruit!

It’s not too late to be thinking of the Maryland State Council scholarship program...  There’s a detailed description on the web at http://www.kofc-md.org/pages/Committees/scholarship/scholar.htm

Briefly, the State Council offers THE FREDERICK M. GOSSMAN MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIP, designed to assist members of the Knights of Columbus holding membership in councils in Maryland in paying tuition for their sons and daughters at accredited Catholic High Schools, made on the basis of academic excellence, personal qualifications and financial need. The children of deceased members are also eligible, provided the member was in good standing at the time of death.

THE WILLIAM J. O'BRIEN, JR. MEMORIAL CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIP, open to Catholic students who are residents of the State of Maryland, and to children and grandchildren of a member of a Knights of Columbus council within the jurisdiction of Maryland.   Applications will be judged on academic excellence, personal qualifications and financial need.

THE FATHER AMOS GAUDETTE MEMORIAL COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP, available to members of the Knights of Columbus in councils within Maryland who are entering their first year of college.  In addition to members, these grants are also open to the wives and children of members. Wives and children of deceased members are eligible, provided the member was in good standing at time of death. Applicants may apply to any accredited four-year college or university. Grants are made on the basis of academic excellence, personal qualifications and financial need, with primary emphasis placed on academic excellence.

THE MONSIGNOR WILLIAM F. SAUER COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP is open to all Catholic students who are residents of the State of Maryland and are in their senior year of high school.  Applicants may apply to any accredited four-year college or university. Grants are made on the basis of academic excellence, personal qualifications and financial need, with emphasis on financial need.

Application period is from November 1 to March 1.  All applications must be received by the Scholarship Committee no later than March 1, 2004.  For scholarship information or applications, write to: Scholarship Committee, Knights of Columbus, P.O. Box 518, Dunkirk, MD 20754.

The Supreme Council has an extensive program of scholarships, awarding almost $1,000,000 in scholarship funds.  You can request applications from Director of Scholarship Aid, Knights of Columbus, P.O. Box 1670, New Haven, CT  06507-0901.  Some of the Supreme scholarships are at the Catholic University of America.  To apply for these contact Director of Financial Aid, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC 20064.  The deadline for CUA is February 1, so don’t delay.

Finally, for many, January is a time when we make resolutions.  Let’s all of us make a resolution to promote more charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism in our daily lives.  Let us try to be more involved in our Order and in our Church.  Let us resolve to share this wonderful gift we’ve been given, membership in the Knights of Columbus, with our family, friends and fellow parishioners.  Think of how each of us has grown personally, socially, fraternally, and most importantly, spiritually, because of our membership (or, at least, how we could have grown).  Sure, we have a good time, and may we have many more, but the underlying current beneath all we do is our Catholicity.   Membership in our order is a great gift.  Ask -- and share this gift with others.

Please join us in the prayer Our Lady gave to St. Catherine Labouré:  “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”

Joseph A. Murphy

District Deputy 18