Strategic Planning Meeting Set

Details are set for the 2005 strategic planning meeting. In addition to this meeting being a great opportunity for members of the council, as well as directors and officers, to gather and go over long-term goals and projects for the council, the meeting will take the place of the September Director's Meeting.
This year, the strategic planning meeting will take place on Saturday, Sept. 10 at 10:30 a.m. There is not real structure to the meeting, but we hope to have it wrapped up by 4:30 p.m. If you can't make the entire meeting, but can stop by for an hour or so, please do so.
The meeting will take place at the Forest Hills Condo Clubhouse, 305 King Dr, St. Charles, MO.
Click the headline above for a map to get to the clubhouse. . .You won't be able to see the clubhouse from the street, but park in the spots provided on King drive and make your way back behind the Condos and the clubhouse is located right next to the swimming pool.
If you get lost or can't find the place, call Kevin Smith on his cell phone (314.623.2734).
Bring your ideas for what you want you see the council do over the next two years.

Breneman Excited for Future of Council

Grand Knight's Column
By Dan Breneman

Brother Knights,

It is month two (2) and we are already moving and shaking.
I have received a list of what I affectionately call our "snailmailers" and they will be getting an August printout in the mail in the coming weeks. Please keep in mind these will not be finely edited copies in that they will be printouts of our WebLog.

In regards to our WebLog please look at our new email group that has been set up. We have been working on a group e-mailing list that will originate from our specific organization. We have set up the following group; harvesterkofc@yahoogroups.com See the item below on the blog for info on how to register for the new group. You can keep your info up to date and therefore stay up to date on anything that needs to be distributed and cannot wait until the next meeting.

Don't forget the strategic planning session on Sept. 10. We will gather at 10:30 a.m. (donuts and coffee provided) then go over the direction of our council throughout the day. All members are welcomed and directors and officers are encouraged to attend, if you can't block out the whole afternoon, at least come by for an hour or two to give your input on various projects or areas you want to focus on. There will be more details and a map with directions at the August meeting.

On a very serious note, I would like everyone to keep the Rutch Family in their prayers. Don and Karen Rutch's daughter Katie was in a very serious car accident last week and will be undergoing several surgeriesÂ…

Everyone's Summer is winding down and I would like you to keep in mind during your busy schedule that just one moment of your time can mean the world to another in need. Say a prayer, pay a visit, offer to help.

Coming SoonÂ…
I will be coming out with a phone tree for our "snailmailers" that will not be able to register for our group emails.

Thank You
Daniel E. Breneman

August Meeting Starts at 7 p.m.

Don't forget that the August meeting will start at 7 p.m. instead of the usual starting time of 7:30. The early start time is due to the installation of new officers and the District Deputy is hopefull that as many officers and members as possible can attend.
Also, don't forget the August meeting will be a 1st Degree, which is scheduled to start at 7:30, so if you know of any prospective members or individuals that you think would make a great Knight, bring them to the August meeting so they can become members of the council.

Council Launches New Yahoo Group

The Harvester Knights of Columbus have created a new group via Yahoo Groups that will allow the leadership of the council to manage contacts and e-mail blasts eaiser and will also allow members to post messages, and stay in touch each with one another.
The main focus for the group though is creating an e-mail list that can be managed by more than one person, so help populate the list by adding your info now:



Click to join the Harvester KofC group

You can click on the headline aboove to go directly to the group page.

5 Events Left @ UMB/Riverport

UMB Update
By John Breneman

We have five events remaining!
Thanks to all who have volunteered so far. The next concert to be staffed is August 26th, a Friday night event featuring 50 Cent which will require 4 volunteers (time will be announced).
James Taylor is Wednesday, August 31st. The lead for JT needs to arrive at 5:30 and I am looking for two 6:15 slots to be filled. Please check your schedules and volunteer by calling John Breneman at 636-978-0234 or 314-422-1691 or email him at john@brenemangomez.com.
Remember, you must wear black shorts or slacks, NO jeans & No open toed shoes. Thanks in advance for your help!

4th Degree Golf Tourney Set for Sept. 2

Once again the 4th Degree Assembly will be holding a charity golf outing on Friday Sept, 2 at the Warrenton Golf Club.
This year the event will focus on raising funds for seminarians and other vocation related efforts. Plenty of spots are still available, and you can play even if you aren't a 4th Degree (you can play even if you aren't a Knight actually). So round up some friends, co-workers, potential Knights, and get your foursome signed up for the tournament.
Cost includes 18 holes of golf with a cart, a BBQ dinner after the round, drinks on the course, and plenty of fun and good times.
For more information, or to sing up your foursome, contact Mike Narkawicz by e-mailing him at narkawiczmandc@cs.com

Entertainment Books On Sale

Once again the Harvester Knights of Columbus will be selling the popular Entertainment Books for 2005.
Gene Stark will be coordinating the selling of the books, so if you want to buy one, or a batch, see Gene and he will take care of you.
This is an easy fund raiser for the council, with nearly $500 generated a year from the sale of the books, so make sure you buy yours today and spread the word with your co-workers, friends and family.

Crazy Bowl Slated for Oct. 15

Mark your calendars now, the 2005 Harvester Knights of Columbus Crazy Bowl will take place on Oct. 15.
Once again the event will include three games of bowling, beer and snacks, a silent auction including autographed Blues jerseys, and of course lots of fun and good times.
We will start reserving lanes and spots for the event soon, so round up your group and make sure you don't miss out on this great time.

Mattingly Gets Praise for Children's Book

The son of current District Deputy Tom Mattingly is gaining headlines for his recently published children's book, "Father Like a Tree," that was recently self-published after Tom's son (named Tom also, Tom wrote the book under the pen name of Matthew S. Field), lost his wife to an aggressive form of breast cancer.
To read a great piece in the St. Louis Post Dispatch about the book, how it came about and the struggles that Tom deals with everyday as a widow and father of three, click on the headline above.
To go to the book's official web page, click here:
http://www.fatherlikeatree.com

Summer Softball Season Stars Aug. 2

The second summer softball season starts Tuesday, August 2 at the Ozzie Smith Sports Complex in O’Fallon.
The complex is on TR Hughes Blvd, north of 70 and just south of the TR Hughes Ballpark. We are playing on field F. There are two teams once again.
The Breneman team plays at 7:30 & the Malone team plays at 8:30. Schedules will be handed out at this first game.
If unable to play CALL YOUR CAPTAIN well in advance of game day. You will note there are many on the roster however there are many absences scheduled already so don't assume that they will have enough players without you. See everyone on Tuesday!

New Grand Knight Eager To Start Tenure

Grand Knights Column
By Dan Breneman

Brother Knights,
First of all I would like to thank each and every one of you for expressing your faith in me by electing me as the Grand Knight of y(our) council. No that wasn’t a typographical error your council is our council and vice versa. I am damn proud to be sitting here typing this first of many newsletter articles for your informative entertainment.

As my first message to you I want you to think of this as an open invitation from here on out that I want you to get involved. I am not just talking about work. I am talking about the fun as well. We are constantly looking for more ways to get y(our) council together for the purpose of having fun. Come out to our director’s meeting (everyone in the council is welcome to attend and give input).

Sometimes it just takes a fresh face and a new idea and we are off and running with it. Director’s meetings are held the first Monday of every month. Unless otherwise given ample notice the meetings are held at the Cottleville Hall at 7:30 p.m. Come out and join us.

Tom Mattingly, our Worthy District Deputy, has planned an evening at the St. Charles Council hall for the installation of officers in our district. Unfortunately I am unable to attend but would encourage anyone who would like to attend this evening of dinner and dancing with their spouse or significant other to please contact me as soon as possible so that I may provide you information on how to get tickets for this event. Harvester will plan a small ceremony of the installation of officers soon and will announce the particulars as they further develop.

Summer is a slow time for us as a council but a busy time for your families. I would like to close this letter to you by saying we do still have Riverport (UMB Pavilion) events and select Family Arena Events. If you get an email from either Dave Meglio or John Breneman they would greatly appreciate a response (yes or no) so that they can have more time themselves to spend with their families.

Have a wonderful Summer and see you at y(our) meetings.

Daniel E. Breneman
bookem99@yahoo.com

Breneman Honored as Knight of the Year

The June council meeting was packed with major events. In addition to it being the final meeting for Grand Knight Meglio, (members of the council showed their gratitude for Dave by showing up with their sweater vests on, some custom made that night), but it was also a perfect time to honor longtime KofC member John Breneman as the Harvester KofC Knight of the Year.

JB was presented with a statue of order founder Fr. McGivney and kind words, and some ribbing, were said about JB from Meglio, Deputy Grand Knight Dan Breneman and Chancellor Kevin Smith.

The award was well deserved for one of the council's most active and unsung members. Congrats John and we are all grateful to have you as part of our council.

June Meeting Minutes Posted

The June meeting minutes have been posted on the council's site.
Click on the "Members" link near the top of the page to access the password-protected section of the site.
Remember, to help speed up the meetings, the minutes will be approved "as posted on the council web site," so make sure you read them over so they can be approved. And of course, if you were unable to make the June meeting check out the minutes to see what you missed.
Click on the headline above for a link to the council's site.

UMB Needs for Upcoming Week

Brothers:

UMB staffing needs for next week include Thursday, July 21st for Averil Lavigne.
We need a lead at 5:00pm and 3 additional volunteers at 5:45.
We also are looking for help on Saturday, July 23rd for the Journey concert.
We need 3-4 volunteers at 6:15pm. We currently have the lead (Kevin Gahagen-5:30) and Bill Struckmann scheduled.
Please email jb at john@brenemangomez.com or call him at (636)978-0234.
Thanks!

July UMB Update

By John Breneman

We have five events in late July and early August which will need staffing.

Thursday, July 21st is Avril Lavigne, Saturday, July 26th is Journey, Sunday, July 31st is Sugar Water Festival????, Saturday, August 6th is Three Doors Down and Tuesday, August 9th is Motley Crue.

To date we have earned over $3,000 working 10 concerts. I am pleased that 43 different people have worked at least one shift. Special thanks to the Steinlage’s. John & Sheila have worked 6 shifts between them! THANK YOU!

Now let’s give them a break by checking your schedules and calling John Breneman at 636-978-0234 or 314-422-1691 or email at the address of john@brenemangomez.com to volunteer for these events.

Remember, you must wear black shorts or slacks, NO jeans & No open toed shoes. Thanks in advance for your help!

2005 State Softball Tourney Fun Time Again

Once again the Harvester Knights participated in the State KofC Softball tourney, held the last weekend in June at the Rainbow softball complex in Columbia, MO.
This year the council had two teams participate, one in the over-35 qualifier division and one in the Open Non-Qualifier Division. Both teams went 1-1 on the Saturday of the tournament but were unable to continue their ride in the tournament with Sunday loses.
The only thing that came close to matching the play on the field was the fun and good times had by the players and their family and friends off the field. The council might be looking for a new hotel for the 2006 tournament though after some run ins with hotel management.
The council was unsuccessful in its bid to host the 2006 tournament in O'Fallon at the Ozzie Smith Sports Complex after a surprise bid was put in by the Columbia Council to once again host the tournament. The Harvester Council only put the bid in for the tournament because they had been informed by many state-level leaders that no one wanted to host the tournament in 2006.
To see a slide show of pictures from the tournament, click on the headline above.

Scholarship Winners Announced

We awarded two $500 dollar scholarships on Friday May 27th at the J and A 8th grade graduation.
The winners were Shannon Lampkin and Danny Hunkins. The teachers and the principal assisted again this year to help make the selection of deserving students.

Meglio Thankful for Support from Fellow Knights

Grand Knight's Column
By Dave Meglio

Brothers,

Two years ago next month I took the job as Grand Knight of the Harvester Council. I stepped into the shoes of a lot of great guys that I respected and admired. I was a nervous wreck the 1st time I ran a meeting, trying to make sure that I provided you something meaningful each time we got together was hard work. I tried to draw upon all the things that I had learned from the Grand Knights of the past. I remember Bob Gragnani who was the GK when I first joined the Knights and how he was so inspirational to me when it came helping the Care Service or the No-Hunger Holiday. Guys like him set a standard for the way a council should be run. I remember how calm cool and collected Tom Shadrach always was whenever we would run into a bump in the road and how he would always say, "everything will work out, you’ll see" and it always did. How darn organized Eric Smith was and as my predecessor, he got me off on the right foot and was always there to answer any question that I had. These guys did an unbelievable job as GK, and I want to use this moment to let them know how much I appreciate their leadership.


I also want to thank a number of other guys. 1st I would like to thank all of the directors who worked with me for the past two years. For putting up with all of my hair brained ideas and who were patient enough to listen to them no matter how off the wall they were. I would like to thank Kevin Smith and Dan Breneman for their support and friendship. You guys are the best and I will be there to support you as you begin your terms as GK and DGK. I want to thank Gene Stark for doing a fantastic job as Financial Secretary. He quietly gets the job done and never looks for recognition. I would like to thank Craig Lalumandier for having the hardest last name to spell and for doing and impeccable job as secretary. Thanks goes to Virgil Beer and Kenny Boone for always having something tasty to eat at the meetings. Their job has a special place in my heart because it was the first job that I did when I joined the Knights. I would like to extend thanks to all the guys who are involved in the degree teams and because of your efforts; you make the Knights a unique and special organization. To the guys who are the membership directors, Tom O’leary and Jim Radi, these men understand that new members are the lifeblood of an organization like the Knights. Special thanks goes to Kevin Smith & Mark Laux for helping us take our council into the electronic era with the Web Site and the Blog (Web Log).

To the guys who make the council work, they do the Family Arenas, the UMB Pavilions, the No-Hunger Holidays, Adapt a Family, Tootsie Roll, and all the other events that we do over a year’s time.


Rich Antrobus
Dan Biondo
Melvin Bishop
Barth Breneman
Woody Borgschulte
John Chaffee
George Crawford
Denny Corr
Tony Dickherber
Earl Dirie
Bernie Donnelly
Dale Dunnerman
Craig Entwistle
Tom Fan
Bob Fletcher
Bob Fusinatto
Bob Brewer
Randy Henry
Nick Gavura
Jack Gillette
Craig Good
Bob Gragnani
Bill Hassall
Gene Heist
Doug Helfrich
Jack Hitt
Craig Lappe
Tom Lyons
Mike Narkawicz
Sean O’Donnell
Mark Parker
Dave Poss
Doug Rada
Joe Radi
John Reavey
Bo Riccardi
Tom Rothermich
Mike Sage
Bob Sage
Pat Stack
Tom Stefaniak
Bob Stravalli
Mike Tobin
Mike Witte
Steve Yallaly
Barry Young
Tom Oleary

Specail thanks goes to the following guys for doing way more than their share:

Rich Schindler
Deaton Ellis
Bob Silvestri
John Hoelscher
Mike Martchink
Glenn Korando
Mike Thomas
Pierce Conley
John Steinlage

Lastly, I would like to thank John Breneman who I bet would have never guessed 25 years ago that when he first saw this snot nosed kid at McDonalds that we would still be working with him today. You are the backbone of the Harvester Knights; I cannot say in words properly how much I appreciate the time and commitment that you have put into this Council. I value your friendship and I measure myself by your example.


I would like to thank you all for your time and if I missed any one, I’m sorry it was not intentional.

Dave Meglio
Harvester Knights

Family Camp Outing Approaching

By Glenn Korando
The weekend of June 3rd, 4th and 5th will be upon us soon. The weather has been great! Warm days and cool nights make for fantastic camping. I hope everyone can attend this year's event. Its sure to be as much fun as last years. Remember to pass the word to all Knights and or family members. Attached are the directions to the farm. Hope to see you all real soon.

What: 2nd annual Family Camp-out Sponsored by Harvester Council # 9625
When: June 3rd, 4th, and 5th
Where: The Korando Family Farm

If you missed last year’s event, you surely don’t want to miss this one!
There is more than enough space for any kind of camper, RV, and or tent set-up.
As last year, all those interested in joining this year’s festivities are urged to R.S.V.P., the reason for this is to make arrangements for porta potties and for Saturday’s joint meal meat purchase. This is not a requirement!! just a recommendation. We want to have enough for everyone.

For Saturday’s group meal we are asking everyone who attends to bring a favorite dish to share. It can be a warm dish, cool dish, dessert, or appetizer. We have the facilities to warm or keep cool anything you bring. Remember, there is a full kitchen, microwave, coffee maker, stove/oven, freezer and 2 refrigerators. There are 6 beds, a fold out couch and plenty of floor space for those who don’t have camping gear or for the ones who need a little more comfort! Just bring your favorite blanket and pillow!

There is 1 modern bathroom facility available for the ladies and as last year, porta potties and outside shower for the men.

To get there:
Take Hwy 44 West to exit 159 (Waynesville), go right, in approx. 3 miles you will hit a stop light which is Hwy 17, make a right and go approx. 11 miles until you are in the town of Crocker. Pass through town until you get to JCT. “U”, turn left on to “U” go approx.
1000 ft. to the first road on right which is Bluejay. Turn right on Bluejay and travel approx. 2 miles to entrance of the farm. Look for signs marked “KofC” entrance is on the left.

Contact Glenn at 636-928-9144, 314-570-8170
korando@concentric.net

Care Service Dedicates New Senior Center

A contingent of members from the Harvester Knights of Columbus was among those in attendance in Warrenton on Tuesday May 24 for the dedication of the new Senior Village which was built and funded through the efforts of the Sts. J&A Care Service.

The project is a joint effort between the Care Service, Catholic Charities of St. Louis, the Cardinal Ritter Institute and the St. Louis regional HUD office.

To view a slide show from the event, click on the headline above.