Thank You!
Saying that is a strange way to start an article, but it is the only way for me to start as I write my last newsletter. At the end of the month, I will end my term as Grand Knight. The last three years have been very rewarding for me. I have grown as a person, a Catholic, and as a man. Of course, in order to be successful a person always needs help, and when someone helps you we are supposed to thank them.
So I start by thanking family; my wife Jody, my son Andrew, and my daughter, Morgan. As Grand Knight, there are many different things we must do. From volunteering at events, to running meetings, to filling out forms. There is a tremendous amount of time and effort that needs to be spent when performing this role. Without my family’s understanding and patience I would never have been able to be a Grand Knight.
Next, I have to thank my Brother Knights. Without their dedication to our mission it would not be possible to achieve all of the things that we accomplished over the last three years. All of my active Knights spend hours every week preparing food, helping in the Parish, and dedicating time to help others.
Finally, I have to thank you, the parishioners. Without your participation at our events, be it Pancakes or Spaghetti to the Tootsie Roll drive, we could not help all of the charities that we work with if it was not for your support.
So what does all of this mean? In my three years as Grand Knight we have done the following:
- Raised over $40,000 to help people with Intellectual Disabilities in our community
- Donated over $10,000 to help feed the hungry
- Contributed over $10,000 to support seminarians
- Donated over $10,000 to the Fr. Bush Hall for Parish use
This is just the big numbers and does not include the various smaller donations to help support the school, military veterans, and other charitable activities. When you start to add everything up we have come close to donating $100,000 to our Parish and community.
However, this requires effort and help. So, I will conclude as I started with these simple two words:
Thank You!
Dean Hayward
Grand Knight