The Lake Current - November 2023

Welcome to the November 2023 edition of our Council newsletter! As usual, here are a few quick but important items up-front before we get into the news. Our next regular business meeting will be Wednesday, November 8th, starting at 7:30 p.m. All members are welcome. We'll be serving a delicious dinner for members at 6:30 for only $5. Just another reminder that our Lounge is now open on Sundays during football season, in addition to our regular hours on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings. They've scored a hit with a menu of delicious food offerings at low-low prices! Burgers & fries, chicken fingers & fries, chicken wings, a full order of fries, and mozzarella sticks are all only $5 each. And grab a hot dog with Kevin Heis's famous hot onions for only two bucks! We are hosting an Admission Degree to initiate new members to our Order and our Council on Friday, November 17th, at 7 p.m. If you know of a practical Catholic gentleman wishing to join, have him contact our Admissions Chairman, Chancellor John Crecco, or Worthy GK Tim McDonald, as soon as possible. Any current First or Second Degree member wishing to ascend to the Third Degree is also welcome to participate in the ceremony. All members are encouraged to attend in support of our newest brother Knights, and you're sure to be fed well after the brief ceremony. Our Council's Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony will be Tuesday, December 5th. All over the world, Knights of Columbus Councils gather together on the first Tuesday of December to "Light Up for Christ" by illuminating their Nativity Creche or Christmas tree. Our Council joins in this celebration of the upcoming birth of the Christ Child with light refreshments and some caroling around the tree. Bring the family and your best singing voice for this very informal - but very fun - annual Council tradition. Gather at 7 p.m.; caroling at 7:30; tree lighting at 8 p.m.!

Our Draft Beer of the Month for November is Fat Tire Ale! Fat Tire's unique flavor profile originates from 1930s Belgium. During this era, small breweries began offering easy-drinking beer crafted with signature Belgian yeast in order to satisfy the tastes of visiting British soldiers. Today, Fat Tire blends a subtle malt presence with a slightly fruity hop profile and crisp finish, to create a bright and balanced beer that drinks easy, anywhere.

C&B Raffle Prices Slashed to $10!!!!!! Our C&B Chairman - Crazy Kevin Shea - has slashed the prices on C&B Raffle Books to only $10! He's practically GIVING THEM AWAY!!!! This is the last chance to get in on the big drawing for $25,000 and there are multiple chances to win for both ticket buyers and sellers! Proceeds benefit many important charities in our state as well as our Council directly. So come on down and talk to Crazy Kevin at Wednesday's membership meeting and ask him for some more raffle booklets. Then throw the money at him. Really. He asked for it. He's begging you to do it. And at the deep, deep, deep discounted price of only $10 per booklet, his prices really are INSANE!!!!

Our Annual Dinner Dance Was Truly A Night to Remember! A fantastic time was had by one and all at our 52nd Annual Dinner Dance & Awards Ceremony at the Ethan Allen Hotel in Danbury on Saturday, November 4th. The crowd of close to 100 attendees enjoyed a splendid cocktail hour and a sumptuous buffet dinner along with music, dancing, and a very memorable awards ceremony honoring people who make our Council such a special place.

Sir Knight Otto Romanino was presented with the well-deserved "Knight of the Year" Award for his 16 years of dedicated service as a member of our Order, as well as his service to our country in the United States Navy, and to our community through efforts including the Carmel Rams Football "Chain Gang," and as a Trustee and the Treasurer for the the Kent Public Library. Surrounded by his family, friends, brother Knights, and Ladies Auxiliary, Otto expressed his love and gratitude to our Council the Ladies. The Ladies also paid their own tribute to Otto, which included an epic marshmallow fight that carried over into the Hospitality Suite. Our "after-party" rocked into the wee hours of the morning! (Good thing we got that extra hour from turning back the clocks!)

This year's very worthy Family of the Year Award went to the Silke Family -- Bill, Gail, Billy and Christina. Gail gave a deeply moving speech expressing her family's love for their extended family at the Knights, and how we have helped them through the dark days following the tragic loss of Gail's brother, Stephen Driscoll, on 9/11. The Silkes' innumerable, deep, and lasting contributions to our Council and our community provide a shining example for Catholic families everywhere.

Worthy Grand Knight Tim McDonald also presented Service Awards to Past Grand Knights Steve Gheduzzi and Rob Firriolo. Tim thanked them for encouraging him to get involved in Council activities and events, welcoming him into the Kitchen Krew, and for being there with support and guidance when Tim embarked upon his own term as Grand Knight. One of the truly wonderful things about our Council is that our Past Grand Knights and other past officers continue to offer their service and support to the Council and to the leadership team long after their terms of office have ended.

The Ladies Auxiliary gave special and well-deserved recognition to member Kathy Burdi. In a relatively brief period, Kathy has become a treasured member of the Ladies Auxiliary. In turn, she expressed her love for her new family of Knights and Ladies. In addition to the presentation of the awards, GK Tim gave heartfelt thanks to the members of the Dinner Dance and Journal Committees, who all worked so hard to pull together an enormously enjoyable event. Tim was not playing favorites when he gave special recognition to his wife, Debbie McDonald, for doing another outstanding job on the journal. It was was without a doubt one of the best ever, and its proceeds raise much needed funds to offset the increasingly crazy costs of holding our Annual Gala.

Holiday on the Lake / Christmas Village - Sat. Dec. 2nd! It's the most wonderful time of the year! Here's the run down on the many fun holiday events taking place in Carmel on Saturday, December 2nd! See the flyers below for more information. Start your day off with some Christmas shopping at the St. James Parish Annual Christmas Bazaar in the school gym from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.  Our Ladies Auxiliary is hosting their third -- and greatly expanded! -- "Our Christmas Village" which starts at 2:30 p.m. There's loads of fun for the whole family inside our Council Hall with "Cookies and Milk with Santa," "Kids' Candy Bingo," and Children's Crafts. Visit the many high-quality vendors in the huge, outdoor holiday market, and enjoy the offerings from the Hudson Valley's finest food trucks, all in the county parking lot behind our building, until 9 p.m. Please see the flyer below. Bring the whole family!  The Ladies are also hosting another great Chili Cookoff, where our local First Responders can vie for the title of "Best Chili in Town"! Proceeds will be donated to the winner's charity of choice. Our Council will once again provide a free Children's Christmas Party with dinner for our members' families starting at 4:30 p.m. Adults will enjoy a pot-luck dinner, so please bring a dish for the community table. Santa will be attending, so please bring a gift (value $20) for each child you bring, for Santa to distribute. RSVP to Anthony Falco at anthonyfalco17@gmail.com or (914) 907-4802 if you are attending. Starting at 5:45 p.m. on Saturday, we will make our way over to the Paladin Center parking lot to line up for the Parade of Lights (steps off at 6:30), with our very own parade float. We need marchers! Come and march behind our Council banner and with our float! We'll once again be handing out thousands of glow necklaces to the crowd along the parade route. Help us assemble them before the parade and then hand them out as we march! There are many other events going on in this year's Holiday on the Lake, including Hayrides with Santa, trolley rides, live music, Chowder Fest at Cornerstone Park, choirs and a Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony honoring veterans in Cornerstone Park, and lots of other festive activities. Please see the flyer below for more info.

Ladies Auxiliary News & Events

Wreaths Across America Support our Ladies Auxiliary in their mission to honor our departed veterans by placing memorial wreaths on their graves for Christmas. You can sponsor a wreath (see flyer below) and you can help them place the wreaths in local cemeteries on the morning of Saturday, December 16th. Information on wreath placement will be available at our November and December business meetings and in next month's edition of The Lake Current.

Fourth Degree News The next meeting of Mother Cabrini Assembly will be Thursday, November 16th at our Council. The meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. All Fourth Degree Sir Knights are welcome and encouraged to attend the meeting.

Veterans Day: Nov. 11 (Fri.) - On Veterans Day we honor and remember those Americans who have served in the United States military. Please remember to fly the United States flag at your home and place of business, and thank a veteran for his or her service! The Fourth Degree Sir Knights of Mother Cabrini Assembly have once again donated a patriotic floral wreath to the ceremonies at the Carmel VFW in honor of all veterans (11:00 a.m., 32 Gleneida Ave.) All are encouraged to attend the brief ceremony, which is always moving and shows our community's respect and affection for our service veterans. Other confirmed Veterans Day events in Putnam County worthy of your attendance include ceremonies at the Kent Veterans Memorial (Terry Hill Rd.) at 9:30 a.m., and at Putnam County Veterans Memorial Park at 1:00 p.m. Nativity Scene Setup: Nov. 25 (Sat.) - Join us outside the St. James the Apostle rectory at 9 a.m. to set up the parish nativity scene. We will need the usual tools and equipment including ladders, screw guns, a socket set (or two), staple guns for the roofing membrane, etc. The church is providing coffee and donuts. After we're done at the church, we'll head back to our Council to decorate the tree and hang the outside decorations. It's always a good time, so join in the fun! Adult Christmas Party: Dec. 16 (Sat.) - Save the date for our Annual Christmas Party which starts at 6 p.m. Enjoy a fabulous (and free!) dinner prepared by our Kitchen Krew and desserts from our Ladies Auxiliary. Cash bar. Bring a gift card for the less fortunate in our community so that they too can enjoy the blessings of Christmas through the St. James Food Pantry.

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