2018 GROUNDHOG DAY EDITION
The Lake Current - February 2, 2018
Punxsutawney Phil says six weeks more winter! So relax by the fire while you enjoy our latest newsletter!

Then do it again, and again, and again...
Join Us This Sunday for a Super Day!

Members and our friends and families are welcome to join us on Sunday, February 4th, for our annual Super Bowl party!

What better way to watch the Big Game than on our big screens, surrounded by good company, guessing just how the Patriots will cheat this time, and all while enjoying a beverage and some tasty food at our cozy-warm council?

Our lounge will be open this Friday evening (tonight) for pre-Super Bowl fun and activities.

On Sunday, we'll be open at 3 p.m. for the pre-game shows. (No, we will not be showing the "Kitten Bowl.") Our lounge will be providing some food, including wedges from Carmel Bagel Deli. But since our kitchen is out of commission during renovations, everybody is encouraged to bring a hot or cold dish, or a dessert, for the community buffet table.

Super Bowl Sunday has become a great family-friendly tradition at our council, and this year will prove to be another event you won't want to miss. Join us!
Welcome our Nine Newest Members!

We were pleased to welcome nine new members of our Council, who each received the honors of the First (Admission) and Second (Formation) Degrees at the exemplifications we held in our Council Hall on Sunday, January 7th. Our newest members are:

Matthew Cannon, Stephen Collins, James Crecco, Christopher Goodman, Richard C. Keating and his grandson, Richard C Keating, James Normile, Nestor A. Velez, and Tom Whalen.

Two of our First Degree members also advanced to the Second Degree: Kevin Heis and Thomas Lavan .

We also had candidates from Brewster and Somers councils participate in the ceremonials, for a total of 18 participants!

Please congratulate our newest Second Degree brother Knights, and encourage them to complete their journey to full Knighthood in our honored Order. We hope to be able to announce the date for a Third (Knighthood) Degree shortly.

Thanks to all of the sponsors and other members who turned out in support of the candidates. Special thanks to our in-house degree team members, who work so hard to do such a great job every time!
Council Free Throw Contest a Slam Dunk!

On Monday, January 15th, we once again participated in the Order's basketball Free Throw Contest for youth. We had an outstanding turnout, with 111 participants -- 75 boys and 36 girls -- 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.

Thanks to Worthy DGK and Youth Activities Chairman Steve Gheduzzi, Worthy FS Mike Rama, and all of the other volunteers who helped out with the competition and food service.
The "J.O." Men's Beefsteak Parish Fundraiser Rocked!

Our 3rd Annual James "J.O." O'Neill Memorial Men's Beefsteak Dinner on Saturday, January 13th, was another smash success, with over 100 men in attendance! 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 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...
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Midnight Bowling Fundraiser Left Everyone Wanting More!

We held our first-ever Midnight Bowling Fudraiser at the all new Spins Bowl in Carmel on Saturday, January 20th, and boy was it a great time!

We had a bunch of lanes to ourselves for over three hours of bowling, with pizza and soda included, plus 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 Mike Bock and Top-Gal Josette Firriolo.

Between the entry fee and our raffles, we raised several hundred dollars for our scholarship fund. Our Worthy Chancellor and Scholarship Fund Chairman Ralph Fleischman really outdid himself with the planning and organization. Thank you, Ralph!

The response was so overwhelming that we're already looking to plan more bowling nights. Watch for announcements and sign-up early. No doubt we'll sell out quickly!

If you want to see something cool, check out these two photos. The black-and-white photo is our own best-bowler, Mike Bock, taken at Spins Bowl. The color photo is a stock photo we previously used to advertise the event. Two takeaways: 1) Looking at that form, it's no wonder Mike is so good; and 2) Harry Gorman is one heck of a photographer!

St. Patrick's Day Festivities Are Almost Here

Join us in marching in the 2018 Northern Westchester-Putnam Saint Patrick's Day Parade on Sunday, March 11th , along Route 6 in Mahopac. This year's Grand Marshal is Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell. The parade steps off at 2 p.m., and we will announce the line-up information as we get closer to the parade date.

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   42nd 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. This event is one of the highlights of our social calendar, so don't miss it!

NOTE: If you are coming to the Grand Marshal's Installation Dinner at Centennial Golf Club tonight (2/2), you must get there early (well before 6 p.m.) to get a seat. Also, please have your check in-hand for $40 per person, made payable to "St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee."







  • Our Comedy Dinner Theater night on Saturday, February 10th is all but sold out. You must prepay and your reservation may go to others on the waiting list if you haven't prepaid yet. Contact Bobby Palazzo or Charlie Grimmer immediately (if not sooner!) for more info.

  • Join us for the 17th Annual KofC Westchester-Putnam Chapter Annual Awards Gala at noon on Sunday, March 18th, 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, 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 are due by February 25th, so please let GK Rob know if you're coming ASAP.

  • REMINDER: The Brother Sir Knights of Mother Cabrini Assembly are participating in our Order's "Coats for Kids" program, and still have some new winter coats in various children's sizes to give away. Please contact Faithful Navigator Steve Gheduzzi if you know a kid in need who we can pair with a coat. These coats are available to any child in our community.

  • Our monthly monthly business meeting is Tuesday, February 13th at 7:30 p.m. We will be discussing and voting on the resolution to approve the expenditure of council funds to make improvements in the kitchen, and we will also discuss the potential rental of our facilities for temporary use during part of the day on weekdays as a senior "friendship center."

  • Over the past few years, officers and members of our council have made a point to get together to attend the 7:30 p.m. Ash Wednesday Mass at St. James the Apostle Church. Let's keep that tradition going this year, on Wednesday, February 14th. Meet at the council by 7 p.m., and we'll walk over to the church as a council. Keep in mind that the second principle of our order is Unity, so please join us and bring your family!

  • Thanks to our members who turned out to take down the nativity scene in front of St. James church on Thursday, January 11th. Because we had such a good turnout, we got the new crèche down, stored the pieces and figures, and cleaned up the lawn all in a couple of hours. Well done brothers!

  • Our wildly popular Fish Fry Fridays begin again at our council on Friday, February 16th, from 5-8 p.m.! Our addition of weekly specials to our menu proved so popular last year that we're doing them again this year. There's no better way to have a great Lenten meal every Friday night, while supporting great charities, than to bring the family to our Fish Fry. So mark your calendar!

  • Our kitchen renovations are proceeding at an amazing pace, and are on schedule for completion before Fish Fry begins. Our hard working crew is publicity shy, so we won't name them now. (And notice how their faces are carefully obscured in the photo below.) But every member of our council, and everybody in the parish and community who benefits from our in-house catering, owes a huge debt of gratitude to these incredibly hard-working -- and very skilled -- volunteers. So big thanks to everybody who has helped with the planning, purchasing, demolition, construction, and execution of our kitchen work. You'll be hearing more about this and other exciting projects at our council very soon.
Remember, a full calendar of events can always be found on our website: carmelknights.org under the Upcoming Events tab, and check out our Breaking News page . And don't forget to "like" our Facebook page for up-to-the minute announcements, photos, event listings, and items of interest.