KC COUNCIL UPDATES

Worthy Brothers,
I hope all of you have been staying healthy and safe during this uncertain time. There are no changes to my last communication on council activities but I do have reminders.

1. Call to Action - By now, you have seen the State Deputy's Call to Action email to check on a Brother Knight or widow.  Take some time this week to check on your fellow Brothers. Contact me if there is a serious need. 
2. Dues in Arrears - We are willing to work with you if you are in arrears.  If you owe dues, please contact Financial Secretary Greg Schockling, gschocklin@aol.com to discuss ways to settle your council dues.   Help us avoid taking money from our budget to cover dues to Supreme and State.
3. Slate of Officers - We are looking for new leaders to mentor for director and officer positions.  All positions are open for nominations.  You must be a 3rd degree Knight to run for office.  Contact DGK Jim Kij, jimkij@comcast.net, to submit a nomination. We hold the first reading in May and vote in June.
4. Recruitment - During the month of March, new members who join online can use a Promo Code: TXKOFC and join for only $15.00. To sign a member up I would suggest you bookmark www.kofc.org/join on your smart phone or tablet. If you know someone who is interested in joining our council, please refer them to the online membership form on the link above or our parish webpage at stlaurence.org/kc11343.... 
5. New Exemplfication - When recruiting new members, we need to share that all three degrees can be attained in under an hour and is open for families to come witness their loved ones joining the Knights.  The new ceremony is dignified and held at a church or chapel. Please spread the news to others. 
6. Essay Scholarships Contest - There is still time to submit an essay before the deadline. Scholarship Essays are due on Tuesday, March 31st.  Please spread the word to family, friends and others to go to our webpage to download the application at stlaurence.org/kc-scho....
7. Calendar Fundraiser - Sell! Sell! Sell! Get those calendars sold.  If you have money and ticket stubs to turn in, you can leave at the Knights mail slot at the parish office or mail it. Since our Lenten Fish Frys were cut short, its imperative we sell those calendars to help make up for loss income from Fish Frys. If you need calendars, please contact Pete Curran, pcurran325@gmail.com or Nicholas Olache, nolache3@gmail.com.
8. Fourth Degree Exemplification - We need new Sir Knights for St. Laurence. If you are interested in joining the Fourth degree or just want more infomation, contact Faithful Captain Ralph Mendonca at gabdanrm@gmail.com.  The next Exemplification is being planned for June 2020.  Keep a lookout for a Flocknote with more information soon.
9. KofC State Convention - State Convention in Dallas has been canceled due to the crisis.  State Council will be issuing refunds. 
10. Hackberry Fishing Trip - There are two spots left for the Hackberry trip in October.  Contact Gary Arrington for more details, arrington.gary@gmail.c.... Contact Gary to find out when and where the next Hackberry Happy Hour get together will be held. 

Please continue to pray for those affected by this crisis.  Stay safe.  Stay healthy.
 Contact me if you have questions.

JD Gutierrez
Grand Knight

Worthy Brothers, 
The Officers and Directors met yesterday to discuss our plan for the next 30 days.  
Due to the uncertainty of when life will return to normal, a decision was made on the following activities for the month of April:
 
The following meetings and activities are postponed or canceled:

• April 2 - Council Business Meeting (Canceled)
• April 4 - Parks Youth Ranch GO FISH (Canceled)
• April 18 - Social Pot Luck (Postponed, will reschedule)

• March 19 - Universal Rosary Prayer with Pope Francis, 3 pm
• March 20 - 40 Days for Life at Planned Parenthood Gulf Freeway
• April 4 - Holy Adoration Hour (Will continue as per the parish guidelines)
• April 15 - Council Officer Meeting 
• Slate of Officers Planning (If interested in becoming a leader, let us know)
• Essay Scholarship Contest
• Retention Committee (with current list of members in arrears)
• Admission Committee (with current list of prospects)
• Go Make A Difference 
• Hackberry Registration (2 spots remain)
• Table Top Sponsorship
• Calendar Fundraiser (Please continue to sell to the extent possible) 
• Organize Donations 
• Fraternal Planning for 2020-2021 

All of these activities are dependent on the current situation and the parish guidance.
These activities will be reviewed again in 2 weeks.  Activities in MAY will be reviewed at the next Officer meeting on April 15.   If needed, we may decide to extend key dates.  Please keep track with every means of communication (Flocknote, emails, cells/text) going forward for updates.  

Continue to pray for those affected by this deadly outbreak. Stay healthy and safe. Call me if you have questions.
 
JD Gutierrez
Grand Knight

Worthy Brothers,
 
This is an update to the previous note by Greg Shockling.  If you are planning to come help with cutting and preparing the fish today at the parish hall kitchen, please plan to arrive at 1:30 p.m.  The time has changed slightly due to a delay in the delivery of the fish.
 
As stated before, we will proceed with this Friday's Fish Fry as scheduled.  This morning I met with the Parish Staff and Father Drew.  It was decided to continue on with the Fish Fry for this Friday as normal.  As we normally do, we will offer folks the option to stay and dine-in or take and go.  We will re-assess future Fish Frys as more information become available.  Other councils in the area and in the Archdiocese are moving forward with Fish Frys as scheduled.
 
Please continue to practice common sense and good hygiene practices if you plan to participate in helping with Fish Fry or any other activity at the parish.  As a reminder please continue to follow viable, credible sources of information from organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and/or World Health Organization. 
 
I will keep you posted if anything changes or if more info is shared.  If you have any concerns or questions, please contact me.

JD Gutierrez
Grand Knight
 

Brothers,
 
We have just got word that we are approved to have the fish fry this Friday as scheduled.  So beginning today with fish cutting at 1 PM we are good to go.  As far as tomorrow, since its spring break for Fort Bend, I suspect it will be a light crowd.  Setup will begin 230/300PM tomorrow, with no school there will be no issues in the parking lot, and we will still need 30 guys to help.
 
As we have all season this year we need to be extra careful handling the food so gloves and hats are a must. As a reminder EVERYONE must wash and sanitize your hands before handling any food even with gloves. IF you are not feeling well or are uncomfortable with the crowd please don’t feel obligated to come.  We will need our usual amount of help, so if you can we sure would appreciate the support. I suspect we will have added to go requests, so we will do our best to be prepared.
 
Thanks see you there today and tomorrow.
 
Greg Schockling
Fish Fry Wizard

Worthy Brothers,
 
The council leadership is carefully monitoring the impact of the Coronavirus locally and its impact on the upcoming council activities.  Supreme has issued some guidance to Council leaders.  I will be meeting with Knights of Columbus Diocesan leadership this evening to discuss recommendations from Supreme Council.  I am in the process of consulting the parish office as well to determine the plan forward for the upcoming and future Fish Frys.  By tomorrow, I should have another update on our plan for Fish Frys and other activities that may be impacted.
 
As you may have already heard, there are several local public events that are being postponed or cancelled in light of the Coronavirus or COVID-19.  Precautions are being recommended by health officials to counter the spread of the virus.   In the meantime, please continue to follow viable, credible sources of information from organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization.  I will provide an update once decisions are made.  
 
Please continue to pray for those affected by this outbreak.
 
JD Gutierrez
Grand Knight
832-490-7574 text/cell