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October 28, 2009

Knights poster contest one of many outreach efforts

Natalie Davis

Approximately 100 members strong, the local Knights of Columbus Council serves the Milledgeville community while raising awareness about intellectual disabilities.

Organized through Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Council 9458 just may be more widely known in the local community for the sweet Tootsie Roll treats they hand out wherever they go. Many should know, however, that the confectionery treats have an intended purpose in mind.

Each year, the local Knights hand out the candies at various events throughout the community in exchange for donations that go to support various area causes. Most recently, Knights appeared at the Deep Roots festival, and they will also be on hand at this week’s Oconee Area Fair.

“We appear at local events and ask for donations,” said local Knight John Geist. “The money gets returned to three or four organizations here locally that deal with mental disabilities.”

The fundraising efforts are a part of the local Knights’ Citizens for Intellectual Disabilities Drive.

Another large fundraiser for the Knights is the annual yard sale at Sacred Heart, which goes to support scholarships for local students and to assist other various outreach efforts in the community.

Extending their outreach to education, last year the local Knights also launched a poster contest in coordination with area schools in an effort to promote substance abuse awareness. The effort was so successful, members decided to give it a try again this year.

We got a little over 600 participants in the various schools that participated,” said Geist, who also serves as Council 9458’s poster contest chairman. “We were actually surprised we got that many and we felt very good about it and we were spurred on to do it again this year.”

Local students ages 8 to 14 are encouraged to develop an original poster and slogan idea designed to discourage their peers from experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Coordination on the project is presently under way with the Knights and Baldwin County Schools, John Milledge Academy, Georgia Military Prep and the local Home School Association. There are two divisions to the contest, one for ages 8 to 11 and a second for ages 12 to 14. Once the posters are completed, schools will hold their own rounds of judging before Christmas break and the school winners will go on to compete in the next round, where local Knights will judge to determine who will advance to district competition. Once the district winners are selected, there are state, national and international competitions.

All contestants will be recognized and individual age division winners will receive $50 U.S. savings bonds at the local Council level. Additionally, a $100 award will go to the school with the largest number of student participants.

Known as the world’s largest service organization, the Knights of Columbus, named in honor of Christopher Columbus, was established in 1882 by a Connecticut parish priest who wanted to strengthen his church’s ties to add to the local community.

The Knights of Columbus is an international Catholic family fraternal service organization with nearly 1.7 million members in more than 13,000 local councils, according to a press release issued by the organization. Last year, Knights and their families donated more than 50 million volunteer hours and $110 million to charitable and benevolent causes.

Locally, the current Grand Knight of the organization is Col. Pat Beer. Geist, who has been familiar with the national organization for a number of years, joined the local Council two years ago when he became a full-time resident of Milledgeville. Current members of the local Council include some of the sons of some of its founding members. And while the Knights is a fraternal organization established within the Catholic church, its outreach spans to non-denominational organizations, and today activities often include the families of members.

“It involves the families a great deal more today,” said Geist.

For more information on the Knights of Columbus Substance Abuse Awareness Poster Contest, call Geist at (478) 452-1439.

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