Grand knight
November 24, 2023
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.
For those of you who can help us cut up the branches tomorrow please meet us at the Gym at 10am. If you have clippers those would be helpful too.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
November 21, 2023
Brother Knights,
This weekend we host one of our most original events, our Family Focus on Jesus Advent wreath making event. Each year we co-sponsor the event with the school and help families prepare for advent and focus on what truly matters this season by making natural homemade Advent wreaths and a prayer service.
First, I would like to officially invite you and your family to join us this Sunday the 26th at 12:30, we'd love to see you there.
Each year we also need helpers for a few hours Saturday morning to unload and trim the pieces of the greenery for the wreaths. More to come on when the greenery will get there for a start time (most likely 9 or 10am), but if you are able to help please let me know and or plan on swinging by to help make the event a success.
Thanksgiving update
With Thanksgiving just a few days away I want to express how thankful I am for all of you. We also have a lot to be thankful for in the outpouring of support we had from the parish and you all for our food drive and our Thanksgiving baskets.
On the food drive front we had over 135 bags of food donated (plus numerous monetary donations) which the pantry was incredibly grateful for. I saw their shelves at the drop off and it was very timely.
On the basket side, we had a large increase of requests this year. As a council we made the decision to take care of as many families as we could and I'm proud to say we were able to say yes to everyone from our area that reached out to us. As of this moment we have provided a meal to 49 families. Big thank you to Charlie Smith for spearheading the program these past few years, Ron Woycehoski and his son (a future knight) for running the program with him, Mike Smith, Stewart Smith, Gene Hahnenberg, Jennifer for fielding all the calls, and all of you who for helping make it happen. We should be incredibly proud!
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
November 8, 2023
Brothers,
As a reminder, tomorrow we have our meeting. We have quite a few things happening in the next month or so.
This weekend we collect the bags full of donations at each of the Masses. If you are able to help at the one you plan on attending please let me know. Distribution seemed to go well with several people asking for more than one bag.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
November 2, 2023
Brothers,
This weekend we hand out bags for our annual food drive. Help handing them out will be needed after each Mass. If you could, please let me know if you are able to help out and which Mass you plan on attending so I can make sure we have coverage at all 4.
For anyone wondering, yes we did just do a drive a few months ago, but that was an emergency drive due to the pantries running critically low. We put it to a vote at the last meeting, and due to the increased need, feedback we got from parishioners, and the holiday season, we decided to still move forward with our regularly scheduled annual drive. Father will be making an announcement for us.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
October 25, 2023
I forgot to mention in my note this week that this Friday is the Flat River Right to Life benefit dinner. Details and Registration can be found at https://rtl.org/event/flat-river-right-to-life-benefit-dinner/.
At a previous meeting the Knights voted to purchase a table and I know they would appreciate seeing us show up and support the cause.
Also attached are the minutes from our previous meeting. Please take a look under the "Minutes" tab and let us know at the council meeting tomorrow if we need to make any corrections or additions.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
October 23, 2023
Brother Knights,
This week Thursday we are having an abbreviated meeting (attendees from our last meeting will vouch that we can do it) and at 7:30 kick off a "watch party" of the Fraternal Benefit webinar happening that night. Please see the details below, but it will be on Aligning Financial Decisions with your Catholic Values, a slightly different topic than ones I've attended before.
I encourage all to attend and invite their fellow brothers who may not be as diligent at reading these notes. Also fraternal benefit nights and the investments/ resources shared in them are for any Catholic man so, as always, feel free to invite any men of the parish.
As I'm sure most of you already knew, but I as a newer Knight more recently learned, the fraternal benefits side of our organization does a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to the financial contributions the Knights are able to make.
FYI based on the invite I would expect it to go to about 8:30pm
Aligning Financial Decisions with your Catholic Values
Thursday, October 26, 2023 7:30 PM EDT
Join us to learn more about insurance, investment and charitable solutions that align with your Catholic values.
Presented by Anthony Minopoli, President & Chief Investment Officer, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors.
Hope to see you there,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
October 12, 2023
Appreciate everyone who's signed up so far to help with the MI Drive. We still have slots left, especially in the afternoon each day.
Still time to sign up or swing by the church office the next two days and see where we could use the help.
stcharleskofc.org/tootsie_signup.html
We were able to hand out one of the two checks from our spring drive today to Camp Optimist for $942. They were very appreciative and wanted to make sure we all knew they couldn't do the work they do without support like ours.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
October 9, 2023
Brothers,
There are still a lot of open slots for the drive this Friday and Saturday. Please pick one and help us raise money for the Special Olympics and Camp Optimist. I promise the time will go quicker than you think and you'll be pleasantly surprised with how many donations you receive just by being there and smiling.
Really the only limiting factor to how much money we can raise is how many of the spots are covered.
stcharleskofc.org/tootsie_signup.htm
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
October 2, 2023
Brother Knights,
Twice a year we stand in front of local businesses handing out Tootsie Rolls and collecting donations for the Special Olympics and Optimist Club-Camp Wah Wah Tay See, a local summer camp for individuals with special needs. Last time we did the drive we were able to raise over $2,000.
This event takes a lot of Knights to make it successful. Please pick one (or more...we're not picky) slots that you could help out via this link or call me at 616-916-0143
If you've never done it before or it's been a little bit since you participated I have to say this is one of the most surprising events we do each year. The businesses look forward to us being there (or else they are really good at pretending). Kids' faces light up at getting free candy. People donate with a smile. And people you've never met talk to you about how much they respect the Knights, that their grandfather was a Knight, or maybe they have a family member who attends the Special Olympics. Mother nature doesn't always cooperate but if that's the hardest part I'll take it.
Side note if you have children, this is a fun way to show them how we can give back and as anyone who has brought their children will tell you, people are even more generous when they see kids out there putting in the effort for a cause.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
September 16, 2023
Brother Knights,
Thank you again to all who helped hand out bags last week. This week we collect the donations. If possible please plan to get to the mass you are attending early and offer to help people bring the bags in from people's cars and collect everything in one place. The carts are very helpful.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
September 13, 2023
Brother Knights,
Looking forward to our meeting tomorrow please see the attached minutes from the previous meeting.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
Knights of Columbus Meeting Minutes 8-24-2023
September 9, 2023
Brother Knights,
Our brother Frank Rademacher let me know he is in the hospital and could use our prayers. Please keep him in your prayers this weekend.
Also wanted to remind you that Monday the 11th at 6:30pm at St. Charles we are hosting the World Day for Peace prayer service for the parish. All are welcome and we picked the time to encourage families with children to attend.
Thank you
Vivat Jesus,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
September 6, 2023
Brother Knights,
Short version: We need a few volunteers to hand out brown bags this weekend at Mass, particularly St. Joseph and St Mary. Please let me know if you can assist after Mass.
A short while ago we were asked by the parish to do another food drive for the two local food pantries. Due to food prices they are running very low. Thank you to Dave Mendrea and Bob Thompson for scrambling with me at the last minute to make this happen since the sooner we get the bags out the sooner we can get the food to the pantries in need.
We will, of course, need some help collecting the food the following weekend at Mass as well.
Lastly I could use a few strong Knights to help me move a bookshelf out of the Knights Library and over to Father's house. I tried to do it with my sister last week and I think it's a 2-4 Knight job. Thinking either after Mass this Sunday, after our meeting the 14th, or maybe some time during the day next week depending on schedules.
Vivat Jesus,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
August 23, 2023
Brother Knights,
Thank you so much for all the hard work you put into the Danish Festival this year. I know a lot of people worked long hours and extra shifts and it definitely paid off. I spent most of the time in the kitchen, but from what I heard Friday was very busy and Saturday we had a line across the street for the whole day! Thank you!
Reminder that tomorrow night we have our meeting at 7:00pm and Rosary at 6:30. Looking forward to it.
Vivat Jesus,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
August 17, 2023
Brother Knights,
Looking forward to a successful few days with the Danish Festival. For anyone planning on or able to help with setting up the booth tonight, we are planning on starting at 4:30 today instead of 5pm.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
August 15, 2023
Thank you to everyone who's signed up to work at the Danish festival this weekend. We still have lots of open slots, particularly in the afternoon and the kitchen. If you haven't done so please go to http://www.stcharleskofc.org/danish_signup.html and sign up for a slot of a few.
Thank you,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
August 9, 2023
Brother Knights. Thank you to all of you who signed up to help with the Danish Festival so far. For those of you who haven't, we now have a signup form on the website at http://www.stcharleskofc.org/danish_signup.html .
Also attached are the minutes from our last meeting. Please take a look. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the meeting this Thursday.
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
Last Minutes
August 8, 2023
Brother Knights,
This upcoming week we have a few events to note. First, Monday starting at around 4:30pm at Ralph's house, we will be getting the Danish Festival Booth out and cleaning it to prepare for the festival. His address is 14198 MacClain St. NE. It's a family event, and the more people we have show up to help the less work we all have to do. Hot dogs and hamburgers will be provided, please bring a dish to pass.
On that note Knights are at all masses this weekend and next with signup sheets for the festival. It takes a lot of people to run both the booth and kitchen both days. Please sign up to help.
On Thursday the 10th we have our council meeting. Due to some maintenance in McKinney Hall we will be in the gym (means we'll have plenty of seating available). Rosary will be at 6:30, meeting starting at 7pm. At this meeting we will be doing an installation of officers. If you are an officer please plan on attending if you are able and dress to be photographed for the website. This will also be our last meeting before the Danish festival.
Next weekend, on Sunday the 13th, we will also be celebrating a prayer service for the canonization of Blessed Fr. McGivney. Service will begin at 2pm at St. Charles. If you haven't attended this in the past, it's a great way to show respect and learn about the founder of our order while being a part of an American's path to sainthood.
Looking forward to seeing you soon.
Vivat Jesus,
Kevin
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
July 31, 2023
Hi All,
Apologies for the late notice, but Kris, Ralph, and I will be meeting at Ralph's house this Wednesday at 5:30 to start coordinating the remaining things needed for the Festival. If you'd like to help in planning and are able to attend the meeting please let me know.
For the rest of us planning on helping at the actual event in a few weeks, feel free to start letting us know where and when you would like to help. A more detailed signup sheet will be coming soon.
Thank you,
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
(616) 916-0143
July 5, 2023
Brother Knights,
Hopefully everyone had a wonderful 4th of July.
I wanted to remind everyone of the End of the Year Council Picnic. This year we have a lot to celebrate winning Star Council. It is a family event so please bring your family. I know my children love playing on the outdoor equipment at Ralph's.
When: 1pm Sunday, July 9th
Where: Ralph VanOcker's place, 14198 MacClain St. NE
Directions: Go north of M-57 on Montcalm Avenue or south of Wise Road to MacClain. On MacClain, travel about half a mile west of Montcalm Avenue. Look for the "VanOcker Drive" sign, and head up the hill to the house.
What to bring: Lawn chairs, plates, utensils and drinks for yourselves, and a dish or chips to pass.
Provided: Hamburgers, condiments, and buns will be provided by the council.
Look forward to seeing you there!
Kevin Norton
Grand Knight
St. Charles Council 2084
616-916-0143
