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January 2021
My brothers,
As we start the second half of the year, I would like to present an analogy of how the year is like a football game – after the first half, we review what worked and what did not work, then plan on how to make changes in the second half. Plus, as a Seahawk fan, I always remember that the Seahawks are a second half team (please ignore the NY Giants game!).
As we begin the second half of the fraternal year, it is clear that what we did in the first half is not working and we need to make some changes in the second half.
Our membership numbers are as follows at the time this article is being written:
New Members – 127 or 18.14% of our goal of 700 Net Members – (-11) or (-4.58%) of our goal of 240
While some Councils are succeeding and have even achieved their yearly membership quotas, this is the toughest time for the Knights in our lifetime and our numbers reflect that struggle. However, we have tools that can help us even during this pandemic. Please read through the items below that we can leverage to make a difference in the second half of the year.
Father McGivney’s Beatification Blessed Father Michael J. McGivney’s Beatification is a great opportunity to start a conversation! Fr. McGivney himself died in a pandemic but the organization he created to provide for the poor and marginalized lives on. Supreme website has great resources to share: https://www.kofc.org/en/events/father-mcgivney-beatification/index.html
Online Membership Social media and online membership can be a great way to reach Catholic men in a way that follows guidelines for safety. Most if not all Councils have members who are savvy in social media – leverage them to set up a Council page and start sharing your good work. Supreme even has a webpage dedicated to social media: https://www.kofc.org/en/news-room/social-media-hub.html. The State has a Facebook page and a Twitter site, and we are always looking for men who are interested in contributing material for the feeds to keep them fresh and relevant.
https://www.facebook.com/KofCWA https://twitter.com/KofCWA
Remote Programming Guide In the Fraternal Advisor #17 sent out on 12/03/2020, there is a reference to the Remote Programming Supplement document. Guide for how to deliver programs during the pandemic. Program Director Scott Hulse will have more on this soon and the document has been posted on the state website: http://www.kofc-wa.org/FrontPageContent/SW/11139RemoteProgramSupplement.pdf
New Supreme Meeting Guidelines Supreme has published a new Council meeting guidelines document and a FAQ document. Grand Knights, you should read these documents and determine what changes you may need to make for Council meetings. The goal will be to make the general membership meetings more interesting and fun, and encourage more men to attend. If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to your District Deputy or myself for guidance: http://www.kofc-wa.org/FrontPageContent/SA/GuidelinesforCouncilMeetings.pdf http://www.kofc-wa.org/FrontPageContent/SA/NewGuidelinesQandA.pdf
WSC Website Finally, our WSC website is getting a makeover and we are adding more content, pictures and articles all the time. Please visit the site to check out the new information that has become available: http://www.kofc-wa.org/nnDefault.aspx I hope that this has given you some ideas and guidance on how we approach the second half of the fraternal year. Times like this are made for what the Knights stand for and do. We want our communities to remember when the pandemic is over who were the ones helping during that tough time. While we must stay safe and follow all the applicable guidelines, we must not be silent and quiet during this time.
Thank you for your work to support our Church and Order. .jpg)
Vivat Jesus! Fraternally, Tom
Thomas C. Williams State Membership Director Washington State Council Membership@kofc-wa.org
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