Program Manual

Message From the Council Growth Director

Jim Wade, Council Growth Director

Council Growth:
Charity demands that every Knight has a personal obligation to share the gift he was given with each Catholic man, thus insuring that the vision of Father Michael J. McGivney is achieved. However, our State Deputy has tasked one individual in each Diocese with that specific job. The Diocesan Council Development Committeeman (DCDC) is responsible to insure that a council is established in every Catholic community that is large enough to support one and where the pastor wants one. In communities not large enough to support a council, it is his responsibility to insure the establishment of a Round Table. In addition it is his responsibility to re-activate dormant councils. He will accomplish his job in close coordination with the Grand Knight, the District Deputy and the Diocesan Deputy.

Round Tables
Round Tables are the vehicle that we use to have a Knights of Columbus presence in Catholic communities that are not large enough to support a full council. The minimum number of Knights necessary to establish a Round Table is one (1). The Grand Knight establishes the Round Table by filing the 2629 Report of Round Tables. This must be resubmitted each year, in the same manner as a Council is reborn through the annual election of new Officers and the completion of the 185. In order to achieve maximum benefit for both the Council and the Round Table community, this should be accomplished not later than 31 July. At the end of the year the Grand Knight is responsible for completing the 2630 Round Table Annual Report. The District Deputy should insure that the Council files this report in a timely manner and at the same time re-establishes the Round Table for the new fraternal year by filing a new 2629 Report of Round Tables.

New Councils
The establishment of a New Council takes the combined efforts of many members. Individual members are the eyes and ears of the community. In many cases they provide the first knowledge that a Pastor desires a Knights of Columbus council in his Parish. This information should immediately be passed either directly to the DCDC or through the DD to the DCDC. Upon learning of this, the DCDC should set up a face to face meeting with the Pastor. Once the pastor gives the green light to start a new council, the DCDC must insure that all actions are started without delay and establish specific dates for each action. The maximum time, from approval by the Pastor, to a finalized package being sent to Supreme, should not be more than 60 days. New members should NOT be placed in an existing council and then be expected to transfer to the new Council at a later date. “NCD” should be noted on the Form 100 in lieu of a council number. It is essential that all steps be completed in a timely manner so that the enthusiasm and momentum is not lost. The new council can then begin supporting the parish and community. The first action the DCDC must take is to inform the Diocesan Deputy that Father wants a council and ask the Diocesan Deputy to appoint a District Deputy, who will work closely with the DCDC to complete the process. When selecting a DD the Diocesan Deputy must take into consideration special needs; such as a second language if appropriate, the desire and availability of the DD to devote the time necessary to accomplish the job. Throughout the process total cooperation and open communication is absolutely necessary. Every obstacle or delay must be eliminated or overcome. We must remember that our goal is to provide a gift to the new members, the parish and the community that will continue to give for generations.

Council Reactivation
The process for reactivating a dormant council is essentially the same as starting a new council, and all steps stated above will be followed. Reactivations however are more difficult because there may be more obstacles to overcome. Many of these are what caused the council to go dormant in the first place. If these are not addressed and resolved there is a strong likelyhood that the council will again fail. Therefore a bit more caution and time may be necessary. Additionally members still assigned to the dormant council must be contacted to determine if they want to remain in the reactivated council as active members. Again it must be stressed that this will be a team effort with all members of the team moving in the same direction. We must always work to do what is in the best interest of the Catholic community and the Order.