As Princeton’s Knights of Columbus prepares for its upcoming fish fries next month, George Barber shared information about the charitable organization with the Princeton Rotary Club on Tuesday.
Barber was the guest speaker at the Rotary Club’s weekly meeting at the Majestic House restaurant. He shared the criteria for being a member of the Knights of Columbus which was founded in 1882 with two main purposes.
click to download audioAccording to Barber, there are approximately 2 million Knights worldwide in 16 different countries with 1,600 separate councils.
Furthermore, Barber noted that the Princeton Knights of Columbus was established in 2011 and is called the “Blessed Trinity Council.” It’s comprised of men from Caldwell, Lyon and Hopkins County, respectively Dawson Springs. He says the local council has been recognized with the Family of the Year and the Knight of the Year awards on the state level, for work associated with the tornado recovery efforts in Dawson Springs.
Barber said that on the state level, the Knights spent about $400,000 on tornado relief from Bowling Green to Fulton, with $28,000 of that money coming back into our community.
click to download audioBarber emphasizes the organization’s upcoming annual fish fries serve as one of their major fundraising events, dedicated to helping The Kings Kitchen of Caldwell County.
click to download audioAnother fish fry event will be held in Dawson Springs to raise funds for its food bank, with $1,900 raised at this event last year.
The biggest involved and recognized program of the Knights, according to Barber, is “Bluegrass on Beshear” due to the organization’s strong pro-life belief. Barber reported that a total of $48,000 was collected during the event held in October. Over ten years, he noted more than $195,000 has been raised and donated to pregnancy care agencies in the local area.
The Knights also have a “Tootsie Roll Drive” at the local Food Giant to raise funds for Bright Life Farms. He mentioned that 85% of the funds raised go to Bright Life with the other 15% going to the state office for Special Olympics and other programs targeted at people with disabilities and special needs.
In addition to Bright Life Farms, the local Knights are also involved with Happy Feet Learning Feet, the Backpack Program, the Food for Family program, and local youth sports programs, among others.
The Princeton Rotary Club meets weekly on Tuesdays at noon at the Majestic Steak House Restaurant. Visitors are welcome to attend the meeting.
