Group celebrates the past year's successes
SASKATOON
Prairie Messenger (CCN)
The 94th annual state council meeting of the Knights of Columbus of Saskatchewan, held in Saskatoon April 8-10, was a call to return to the basics of the Columbian order, a call for knights to hold fast to the Catholic principles around which the order was founded 134 years ago.
Under the theme, "Be Merciful as our Father is Merciful," state deputy Denis Carignan, the state executive, and delegates and their families from around the province celebrated the past year's successes and deliberated on how to better serve the Church and the community.
The business meetings focused on informing all present about the important issues facing the church, the community and the order, with guest speakers instructing the delegates on the information they should be taking back to their home councils. The delegates passed the following resolutions in support of the sanctity of life:
"That the State Board and through it the Supreme Council be urged to adopt a program by means of and through the subordinate councils that knights will stand ready to be at the side of all who are dying to provide comfort, reassurance, and solace, so that as an order, we assure that no one dies alone.
"That the Saskatchewan State Council encourages its over 10,000 brother knights within the state, their councils and families to consider prayerfully making a commitment to an annual $25 membership to the Saskatchewan Pro-Life Association which can be acquired online at https://www.saskprolife.com/organization/membership.
"That the Saskatchewan State Council encourages its over 10,000 brother knights within the state, their councils and families to consider prayerfully making annual charitable donations to a Saskatchewan pro-life educational trust account to be administered by our Saskatchewan Knights of Columbus Charitable Foundation, the annual income from which would be used to provide base-level support for education initiatives against euthanasia and abortion in Saskatchewan.
"That Saskatchewan State Council on behalf of the Saskatchewan Knights of Columbus develop and submit a joint declaration against euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, to be submitted to the Government of Canada and Supreme Court of Canada."
The state council elected the following executive effective July 1: state deputy Brian Schatz of Regina; past state deputy Denis Carignan of Battleford; state secretary Chris Bencharski of Meadow Lake; state treasurer Joe Riffel of Saskatoon; state advocate Larry Packet of Davidson; and state warden Ren Gaudet of St. Louis. Bishop Bryan Bayda of the Eparchy of Saskatoon was named state chaplain.
From the opening mass celebrated by Bayda to the memorial mass celebrated by Abbot Peter Novecosky, OSB, the convention was a great success, holding firm to the principles of the order: charity, unity, fraternity and patriotism. The delegates left Saskatoon better informed and inspired to go back to their communities and join together to "be merciful as our Father is merciful."