The Lake Current - February 2019
So Punxsutawney Phil failed to see his shadow on Groundhog Day morning, thus absolutely guaranteeing that an early spring is on its way. Because we all know that giant rodents with an overbite make the best meteorologists. (Can't be worse than Al Roker, amiright ?)

And now here's a few quick reminders before we get into the news:

  • Last call for our CPR Class! As announced in a special email in late-January, we have made arrangements with the Putnam County Bureau of Emergency Services for them to teach our members CPR for the benefit of our Comfort Station operations. The course takes about four hours and is set for Saturday morning, February 16th (start time 8:00 or 9:00 am - we will confirm) at the Bureau of Emergency Service Building (112 Old Route 6, Carmel). Our class is just about full to capacity, but please let Denis Hanrahan know if you are interested in taking the course by sending him an email or calling him at at 845-225-3048.

  • Fish Fry Staff Meeting: If you're part of our fantastic Fish Fry Crew -- or would like to be -- please join us for a very important staff meeting in the Council Hall on Tuesday, Feb. 26th at 7 p.m. We especially need extra help to manage the dining room, serve customers, and help with cleanup. Our Fish Fry has become so wildly popular that we are putting plans in place to make things even smoother and more efficient. All of our staff members' input is crucial to making it work!

  • Our regular monthly business meeting is this Wednesday, February 13th, starting at 7:30 p.m. We'll be serving dinner (homemade meatloaf, mashed potatoes & gravy!!!) for only $5 starting around 6:30 p.m. There are many activities to plan for and important business news to share with the membership, so all members should attend! You know our motto: "Come for the meatloaf; stay for the meeting!"
Midnight Bowling BLAST!

Our second Midnight Bowling Fundraiser at Spins Bowl in Carmel on January 26th was a monster success! More than 90 bowlers helped us raise over $2,000 for the Council's Scholarship Fund!

We had almost the entire alley to ourselves for over three hours of bowling, pizza, and a cash bar. The Spins Bowl staff treated us very well, and everybody had an awesome time and can't wait for the next one! We even had raffles and some nice prizes for our best bowlers, including Top-Guy Paul Tangredi and Top-Gal Lisa Stofko . The "Honest Bowler" Award went to Ladies Auxiliary FS Allison Keating .
Thanks to all of our bowlers who supported the event, as well as the members who couldn't make it but still sent in a donation for the Scholarship Fund. Thanks also to the Ladies Auxiliary for their support of the event. And very special thanks to Worthy Grand Knight Ted Czerniewski of Mahopac Council for donating back his winnings from the 50/50 raffle to our Scholarship Fund.

Our Worthy DGK and Scholarship Fund Chairman Ralph Fleischman outdid himself again with the planning and organization. Thank you, Ralph!

The response was even more overwhelming than last year, so we're already looking to plan more bowling nights for this year. Watch for announcements and sign-up early. No doubt we'll sell out quickly!
The "J.O." Men's Beefsteak Parish Fundraiser Rocked Again!

Our 4th Annual James "J.O." O'Neill Memorial Men's Beefsteak Dinner on January 12th was another smash success, selling-out with 120+ hungry men in attendance! They weren't hungry when they left because we featured our signature, all-you-can-eat, gourmet filet mignon cooked over charcoal, sliced thin and served on garlic bread rounds. YUM!

We continued the tradition started by J.O. and gathered at our Council to enjoy great food, good cheer, and watch the NFL Playoffs on our big screen TVs. All of that fun helped us raise funds to benefit St. James the Apostle Parish. We are still doing the final accounting, but we plan to present our donation of several thousand dollars to the parish very shortly.

Thanks to all of our guests, our ( very ) hard-working in-house catering crew, and all those who generously donated prizes for the live auctions and raffles. See you next year!
And speaking of great food...
Recognizing Another Great Council Benefactor

A while back we told you about the generous donation of the spectacular weather vane atop the beautiful new cupola that's sitting up on our building's roof. What we should have also mentioned is that the cupola is sitting on an all new roof made from materials donated to us entirely by Richards Building Supply Company !

Owned by the Guzior Family, Richards is a world-class building supply outlet with 60 locations across 13 states. Our own brother Knight Chris Pompa is Deputy General Manager of the Richards branch in Danbury. Knowing that Richards has a commitment to helping charitable and service organizations, Chris helped us secure all of the materials for our new roof, including shingles, siding, underlayment, and everything else we needed for a long-lasting, beautiful new roof.

Please join us in thanking Chris along with his team at Richards in Danbury: Regional VP John McCann, Area Manager Bill Duffield, and Danbury General Manager Jim Hilbrandt. Please keep Richards in mind any time you're in need of quality construction materials, and say "thank you" in person for our great new roof!
Council Free Throw Contest Another Slam Dunk!

On Monday, January 21st, we once again participated in the Order's basketball Free Throw Contest for youth. We had an outstanding turnout, with 102 participants ages 9 to 14.

In addition to running the competition and handing out awards, we also gave the competitors hot dogs and ice cream to nosh on. The boys and girls also got really cool KofC certificates for their efforts.

The Girls Winners were Kayden Delamere, Caroline Ward, Morgan Johnson, Madison Cario, Sadie Zion, and Alexandra Knowles .

The Boys Winners were David Hubbs, Jack Burke, Martian Bumbar, Damien Santiago, Marco Recchia, and Andrew Viebrock .

They now will go on to the District-level competition. Congratulations to all of our winners, and best of luck advancing!

Thanks to our Youth Activities Chairman, Worthy FS Mike Rama, for once again running the event with GK Steve, and to all of the other volunteers who helped out with the competition and food service.
7 New Third Degree Brothers in Our Council!

Our Council was proud to host a Knighthood (Third Degree) Exemplification on Sunday, January 27, at which 14 fine Catholic gentlemen became full members of our honored Order. Seven of those brothers are members of our Council:

Joseph Babnik, Kevin Heis, Philip Larkin, Stephen Marotto, Connor McGrath, Declan McGrath, and John Reilly.

Please congratulate these brothers when you see them!

Thanks to our Worthy Conference Officers for bringing the degree to our chambers. Thanks also to all of our members who were sponsors of our new Third Degree brothers, and all those who turned out to support them at the ceremony.
Bill Dowling Installed as Grand Marshal!

It was a packed house at Centennial Golf Club on February 1st as our brother Knight, Bill Dowling, was officially installed as Grand Marshal for the 2019 Northern Westchester-Putnam St. Patrick's Day Parade!

A sumptuous reception was followed by a moving ceremony that included excellent speeches by Parade Chairman Pat O'Malley and the outgoing Grand Marshal, Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell, as well as the presentation of proclamations to Bill by local dignitaries. Bill's acceptance speech was the highlight of the evening, being both touching and funny, and bringing down the house with a lengthy standing ovation!
Come march behind our Council banner in support of Bill in the parade in Mahopac on Sunday, March 10th . We are proud to once again be a prime sponsor of this parade, which is the third largest in New York State and is in its   43rd consecutive year. 

This parade is meant to recognize and celebrate Irish culture, heritage, and pride for those who have emigrated here from the Emerald Isle, the Irish-American community, as well as those who are Irish in spirit! There will be numerous organizations, bands, clubs, patriotic groups, Irish dancers, and a vast array of participants showing their support of the Irish community.

As always, we will have a corned beef luncheon and reception at our council after the parade with live entertainment. This event is one of the highlights of our social calendar, so don't miss it !
A Wee Bit O' Murder: Mystery Dinner Theater on March 9

"Faith and begorrah!" Just in time for St. Patrick's Day, our Ladies Auxiliary is bringing back the hilarious ACME Mystery Company on Saturday, March 9th, for a night of interactive fun with " A Wee Bit O' Murder " mystery dinner theater!

Our last show with ACME was an absolute riot , with non-stop laughs, some sharp (and not so sharp) detective work to figure out the killer, and outstanding performances by the cast and our own guests. (Who can ever forget the infamous hog-calling contest?)

Your $50 (prepaid) ticket includes dinner, a drink (beer or wine), and a great comedy/mystery show that you're a part of . There will be a cash bar, and tables of eight are discounted to $360. (Hey, that's saving you five bucks a head. Buy yourself a drink!)

The fun starts promptly at 6:30 p.m., so don't be late!

Get your payment in by March 1st, make your check payable to the Ladies Auxiliary, and mail it to Council 6318 Ladies Auxiliary, P.O. Box 361, Carmel, NY 10512. For questions or to reserve seats, send the Ladies an email or speak with President Maria Barry.

A wee bit about our program, courtesy of the ACME Mystery Company:  

A Wee Bit O' Murder

"Holy St. Patrick on a stick! Someone has stolen the pot of gold and now you and all the other leprechauns of Clover Union Local Number 7 have your little tails in a spin. The president of your local, Jimmy Jack Daniels O'Toole, is demanding that you get your wee bottoms over to the pub as fast as your little feet can go. If the International Fellowship of Little Knickers finds out about this, you'll all be turned into garden gnomes!"
Fourth Degree News

MEETING NOTICE
The next meeting of the Fourth Degree Sir Knights will be Thursday, February 21st at 7:30 p.m. at our Council. All Sir Knights should attend!
Try Not To Lose Your Head on Valentine's Day

Sure, you know that February 14th is Valentine's Day. But did you know that the holiday is actually the feast day of Bishop and martyr Saint Valentine of Rome, a.k.a. Valentinius?

One historical tradition says Valentinius was martyred during the reign of Roman Emperor Claudius Gothicus. He was arrested and imprisoned upon being caught marrying Christian couples and otherwise aiding Christians in Rome who were being persecuted by Claudius.

When Valentinus tried to convert the Emperor to Christianity, Valentinius was condemned to death. He was beaten with clubs and stones (which is something any man who has ever forgotten it was Valentine's Day can identify with). When that failed to kill him, he was beheaded on February 14th, 269 A.D.

We hope you have a nicer Valentine's Day than Valentinius.







  • Thanks to everybody who turned out for our great Super Bowl Party on February 3rd. We had the most AMAZING buffet thanks to our creative and generous guests! Even though the game was a snoozer, the halftime show was "meh," the commercials were mostly forgettable, and the hated Patriots won yet again, it was still a fun time to be with friends and share a great feast.

  • "MARCH MADNESS" Comedy Dinner Theater - Saturday, March 30th: Join us for another great night of comedy dinner theater hosted by Fran Capo with Feature Emcee Bill Chang and co-headliners Mike Eagan and Rob Falcone. Doors open at 6 p.m.; dinner served at 7 p.m.; showtime is 8:30 p.m. Your $75 ticket gets you open bar, appetizers, catered hot buffet dinner, dessert and the show. Advanced ticket purchase is required! For tickets, contact: Bobby Palazzo 845-216-1997 or Charlie Grimmer 845-222-7392.

  • Join us for the 18th Annual KofC Westchester-Putnam Chapter Annual Awards Gala at noon on Sunday, March 24th, at Mulino's at Lake Isle in Eastchester. Your payment of $65 per person includes a cocktail hour, dinner, dessert, wine, beer and soda. These have always been a lot of fun, the food at this new venue is fantastic, and you're sure to want to come out for a great afternoon of fine dining and dancing to honor a very worthy member of our Council. (We will announce our honoree at our February business meeting.) Reservations to the Chapter are due soon, so please let GK Steve know if you're coming ASAP.

  • Last but not least, if you like the great event photos that we publish in The Lake Current, please say thanks to our own brother Knight Harry Gorman, who takes many of them for us. Harry is a very talented landscape photographer, but he also takes great candids at our many functions. Join us in telling him "WELL DONE, HARRY!" when you see him. (You can't miss him. He's the tall guy always hiding behind a big camera.)
Remember, a full calendar of events can always be found on our website: carmelknights.org under the Upcoming Events tab. And don't forget to "like" our Facebook page for up-to-the minute announcements, photos, event listings, and items of interest.