Knights of Columbus

Here is an overview of our Soldier Aid program and also an alert to you about a policy for sending gift packages from our council to relatives now serving our nation.

We (I, acting as the KofC committee) send packages to a contact person for a group of soldiers, a contact who represents his company/brigade/platoon...etc...  and who distributes the goodies to the folks in his or her unit.  And some of the troops will also end up handing out a portion of their goodies to local kids they meet. 

The contacts are folks I pick from a web site:  anysoldier.com.  All I have are just "names," with a brief description of the type of unit they are in, where they are serving, and what they request for their troops; I know nothing about them personally.  I select contacts based on their location (now almost always Afghanistan).  I select units that are newly deployed, away from big bases, have primitive conditions, and have no easy access to "luxuries" like a PX  Many of the contacts are chaplain's aides who travel over wide areas, visiting remote outposts.  Many are medics who can distribute the goodies to those who might need a "boost" the most, folks out on the front lines.

Besides the goodies, an equally important thing that I send is a personalized letter, describing the Knights, our council and program, and usually a paragraph about our New England sports teams, and some pictures.  (I always include a picture of the our council guys giving the “Thumbs Up” in the first package to a new contact.  Your faces have been seen by 100s of units all over the middle East!) 

I have gotten feedback from contacts saying that getting a Tootsie Roll is nice, but getting "a letter from home", even from a stranger, is warmly appreciated.  The contacts I have had over the last six years are from all over the country.  From the contacts that have written a "Thank you" back to us, I found out that some have had limited exposure to Catholics, since they were deployed from some Reserve or Guard unit deep in the Bible Belt.  And then again, one  contact wrote back to tell me he was a Priest and 4th Degree Knight!  In the end, the contact and their folks in their unit get to taste some goodies and to read about our council, our good works, and get to know some Catholics through my letter.  Maybe some of the people who get our packages will remember us when they go back home and might join the Knights because of the kindness we show them now.

EVERYONE in the military, separated from family and home, deserves thanks and support from every citizen of this country.  BUT, I have a limited budget, so I want to get the packages to the contact people where it will do the most good for the greatest number of servicemen.

My "mission parameters" are to send packages to those most in need and to spread the word about the Knights and the works we do as Catholic gentlemen.

I have been approached at times by several council members who have said, "Send a package to my son [or nephew, niece, etc.]  Here's the address"  This puts me in an awkward position. 

·         Our relatives already know about the Knights,

·         I know nothing of that relative's unit conditions, (a foxhole in the mountains of Afghanistan or behind a desk at a supply center in Hawaii)

·         What kind of a letter would I include?  A one-line letter that says, "Your dad told me to send this to you."

·         The soldier aid is not my money but the council's money.  Is a personal package a proper use of the council's money and the limited budget I have been given?  For every personal package sent, some other soldier won't get one.

·         Should I say “No,  Send your own packages?”  Where is the charity, unity, and fraternity in that?

·         But, the relative might be just as needy and deserving of a package as anyone else.

The following PROPOSAL was discussed at our January 25, 2011 council meeting and approved: 

The council will send a goodie package to a relative of a council member, if and only if:

·         The relative is deployed to a hostile area (Afghanistan or Iraq)

·         The unit should be a “needy” unit (not some 4-Star General's office staff)

·         The relative is asked to share the wealth with his/her buddies,

·         The council member will write a letter for me to include in the package; the letter should talk about the Knights! 

If anyone would like to have me “send a package,” contact me and I can give you copies of what I have done in the past, to be a guide for your letter.

I will gladly help any council member through the shipping and post office form process, if they want to prepare and ship their own personal packages, apart from the Knights.  Sending to an APO address can be a bit confusing at first; after 304 packages, I think I have the hang of it now!