Hello. My name is Dan Fisher, and I am the Grand Knight for the Knights of Columbus at Our Lady of Grace. What are the Knights, you might ask.
In 1881, in the small parish of Saint Mary’s in New Haven, Connecticut, twenty-nine-year-old Father Michael McGivney gathered a group of men and proposed establishing a lay organization to prevent Catholic men from entering secret societies that were antithetical to Church teaching and to help the families of deceased members. These men chose Christopher Columbus as their patron.
In 2002, Our Lady of Grace received its charter, started by 52 Catholic gentlemen. We now have over 130 members dedicated to making a difference. Our foundational principles are Charity, Unity, Fraternity, and Patriotism. As a Knight, you have the opportunity to support your parish, give back to your community, grow in faith, and gain exclusive access to our top-rated insurance programs to protect your family.
Our Knights are deeply involved in the Culture of Life Fund, providing ultrasound machines to pregnancy resource centers; Coats for Kids, right here in Palm Bay; disaster relief; vocations; the Society of Saint Vincent DePaul; Loaves and Fishes. Our members cook for many of the events we have right here at Our Lady of Grace.
Over the past couple of years, we haven’t been able to serve as we had been used to. Our past Grand Knight, Danny Alvarado, guided the Council through the rocky road of Covid 19. Now it’s time for us to shine, once again. You will be seeing our Knights much more over the next year and into the future, as we resume our commitment to service to our fellow parishioners.
As we contemplate and pray for the possible canonization of our founder, I encourage each one of you men to prayerfully consider becoming a Knight of Columbus. I promise you won’t regret it!
Thank you.