The History of Knights of Columbus Bishop Greco Council 9499
The Knights of Columbus was founded on March 29, 1882 by Blessed Father Michael J. McGivney and a group of working-class immigrant Catholic men at St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, Connecticut. These men’s goal was to form a mutual benefit society to meet the needs of immigrants, refugees, and families suffering from the death of a breadwinner. Late-19th century Connecticut was marked by growing fraternal benefit societies, anti-Catholic prejudice, and dangerous factory working conditions that left many families fatherless. Recognizing a need in his community, Father Michael J. McGivney, the 29-year-old assistant pastor of St. Mary’s Church gathered a group of men at his parish on October 2nd, 1881. He proposed establishing a lay organization to prevent Catholic men from entering secret societies antithetical to Church teaching, uniting Catholic men and helping families of deceased members. The Order was founded that following spring and grew in the following decades. The Order made in-roads into North Carolina during the early 20th Century as more Catholics began to move to North Carolina and other southern states. In the 1940’s Santa Maria Council #2829 was chartered at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church in Winston-Salem. Holy Family Catholic Church in neighboring Clemmons, NC became a mission parish of St. Leo the Great Parish in the 1970’s. The story of Council 9499 begins in 1987 with a group of Knights that proposed establishing a separate council for Holy Family Catholic Church in Clemmons.
The Story
In January 1987, Mike Facciolo and John Harrison met with Father Cecil Tice of Holy Family Church to discuss the feasibility of forming a Knights of Columbus Council centered around the parish in Clemmons. The meeting took place at Clemmons Kitchen. The recollection is that Mike Facciolo paid for the meal, making it the first, last, and only time in the history of the council that Mike picked up the check. Father Tice agreed with the proposal to form a council centered around Holy Family Church in Clemmons. Letters were sent to the members of the neighboring Santa Maria Council #2829 in Winston-Salem who attended the Holy Family Parish. An organizational meeting was held in February 1987. On March 1, 1987, the council was formed with 16 first degree candidates, 22 transfers from Santa Maria Council #2829, and 10 transfers or reinstatements from other councils. There were 48 charter members of the council
At the first council meeting, elections were held, and John Harrison was elected as the charter Grand Knight. Mike Radford was elected Deputy Grand Knight, and Tom Bohnert was elected Chancellor. A discussion on what to name the council surfaced. Just six weeks earlier, the Supreme Chaplain, Bishop Charles P. Greco, passed away. After a heated discussion, the Council was named in honor of Bishop Greco, not only because of his strong devotion to the Church and the Knights of Columbus but because of his advocacy for people with intellectual disabilities. Supreme designated the council as Council #9499.
The Early Years
During the first year, all council meetings, degrees, and programs were held in the concourse of Holy Family Church. The Curlin Family Center would not completed be until 1988. In the first year, the first Council Bingo event was held with over 225 people attending. The Council also established the annual Christmas Party and Youth Easter Egg Hunt. In the 1988 fraternal year, Council 9499 was awarded Star Council, received the State Best Small Council of the Year Award, and received the State Membership Award. The Bingo event was awarded the State Church Program of the Year, and Grand Knight John Harrison was awarded State Knight of the Year.
In 1988, Mike Radford became Grand Knight and established the Adopt-a-Highway program. Initially, the Council sponsored Peace Haven Road but in 1995 moved to Kinnamon Road outside of Holy Family Church. The first Super Bowl Party was held in the winter of 1989, and the council grew with a record of 52 new members in one year. At the end of the 1989 fraternal year, Council 9499 was awarded Star Council, Distinguished Council, and the State Best Medium-sized Council of the Year Award. Grand Knight Mike Radford was awarded State Knight of the Year, and PGK John Harrison was elected as State Warden.
The 1990’s
As the council entered the 1990’s, membership grew to 160 members by the end of the 1990 fraternal year. In 1990, Grand Knight Bob Nowak and group of Brother Knights built the Nativity Set in Al Bruno’s garage. The original plans for nativity dated back to 1953. The Council began conducting a Rosary Program and was awarded Star Council and Best Large-sized Council of the Year. It was the first and only time in the history of North Carolina that a single council was awarded Best Council of the year in three consecutive years, in three different categories. In 1991, Al Bruno became Grand Knight, and the council held its first Nite at the Races event. Eighteen new members joined the council, and the council was awarded Distinguished Council. In 1993, under Grand Knight Keith Tart, the first Lenten Fish Fry was held. The Council received the Columbian Award and the Distinguished Council Award. During the 1993-1994 fraternal year, Joram Thomas was elected Grand Knight and the council grew to 170 members. The Council was awarded Star Council, received the
Distinguished Council Award, and was awarded the State Best Large-sized Council of the Year Award. In 1995, Grand Knight Jim Gildein and a group of Brother Knights built the Knights of Columbus Shed and the Holy Family Church Playground. In 1996, under Grand Knight Bill O’Neill, the State Council dedicated the Holy Family Icon outside of Holy Family Church, and the council received the Supreme Family Program of the Year for the Family Christmas Party. By the 1997-1998 fraternal year, under Grand Knight Hank Shurtz, the Council’s RSVP Bingo Program, today known as Support our Seminarians (SOS) Bingo, had grown to support 5 seminarian scholarships, Operation LAMB raised $26,000 through Tootsie-Roll programs, and PGK John Harrison was elected as State Deputy. The Council was also awarded the Supreme Family Program of the Year for the Family Fishing Tournament Program. In 1999, under Grand Knight Lenny Meyers, the council was awarded the Supreme Family Program of the Year for the Santa’s Workshop Program. The Meyers family was also awarded State Family of the Year, and the council won the State Basketball Tournament.
The New Millennium
In 2001-2002, under Grand Knight Chris Parker, the Council raised $21,156 for LAMB and again won the Supreme Family Program of the Year for the Santa’s Workshop Program. The Bingo Program had grown to sponsor 7 seminarian scholarship. Holy Family also broke ground on a new church sanctuary.
In 2004, Grand Knight Jim Callahan began the first annual Lenten Retreat. The Council was awarded the Honor Council Award and the Columbian Award. In 2007, Grand Knight Jerry Bryant established the Spiritual Enrichment Group Program. Spiritual Enrichment Group is a semi-monthly bible study and social gathering for the councils Brothers, meeting every 2nd and 4th Saturday at 8am in the Church to study the bible and discuss topics relevant to Catholic evangelization. Past Grand Knight Chris Parker became Spiritual Enrichment Group Coordinator, and holds to the position to this day.
In 2008, Grand Knight Jerry Hamziuk appointed Past Grand Knight Jim Callahan to lead the He’s My Brother Taskforce.
The taskforce was charged by the Grand Knight and the Holy Family Pastor, Michael Buttner, with establishing a program to help Brother Knights impacted by financial hardships, such as the 2008 Financial Crisis. The council established the “He’s My Brother” Fund as a permanent fund to provide limited emergency financial relief to Brother Knights in need. Today “He’s My Brother” funds are available to provide emergency relief to any Knight that is a member of Council #9499 without a regular income for at least 60 days or demonstrates an extraordinary need to the Grand Knight and the Board of Trustees. Grand Knight Jerry Hamziuk also established the Gold Card Program whereby widows of a Brother Knight receive lifetime free admission to any Council 9499 events.
The 2010’s
In 2010, Grand Knight Mac McGaffigan acquired a Father McGivney Portrait for $25 at a State Knights of Columbus auction. Hoping to provide a purpose for the portrait, he established the Council’s Father McGivney Spirit Award. Each year the portrait is awarded to a Brother Knight that demonstrates a life of charity in the spirit of Father McGivney. That Brother is honored with displaying the portrait in their home for the fraternal year before passing it on to another Brother in the Council during the next fraternal year. Bob Duckworth was Grand Knight in 2011 when our Council welcomed thirty-three (33) new Brothers, including twenty-eight (28) through Initiation. That was enough to double our annual membership goal and earned Bob and our Council an invitation to the annual convention.
In 2015, Grand Knight Dale Herbstritt, staffed the Corn Maze at the Winston Salem Children’s Home, raising $3,200 for council causes and over $100,000 for the Children’s Home itself. The Bingo program had grown to support a record 15 seminarian scholarships, at the time, providing scholarships to all seminarians pursuing the
priesthood in Diocese of Charlotte. The Council was awarded the Columbian Award and the State Charity Award. Brother Michael Brown was awarded State Golden Knight of the Year, and our Chaplain, Father Steve Hoyt, was awarded State Priest of the Year.
In 2017, Grand Knight Joe Muster dedicated the Right to Life Monument outside of Holy Family Church. The monument recognizes the Unborn, Vulnerable, Forgotten, and Aged by bringing focus to the times when society often devalues life. The bronze plaque just below the statue reads, “All Life is Precious”, followed by a quote from St. Teresa, “Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces that we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work.”
In 2017, Past Grand Knight Bob Smith, an avid woodworker, also built a Necrology Board to recognize all deceased Brothers of the Council. Each year, the Council holds a Memorial Mass to recognize and pray for all Council 9499 Brothers that have passed away since the council’s founding in 1987. Knights volunteer as cantors and readers at this Mass. Each year, a Fourth Degree Honor Guard accompanies the Necrology Board into the Church prior to the Memorial Mass.
In 2017, a passionate discussion on living “Faith in Action” at the Council’s annual Lenten Retreat led to the idea of a Catholic Radio Network. The purpose of this radio network would be to provide 24/7 Catholic evangelization to the region. This became the seeds for what would become Carolina Catholic Radio Network, a listener-funded 501(c)(3) non-profit radio network broadcasting from Belmont Abbey College on AM 1270
WCGC-Belmont. The Council’s own Brother Mike Brown joined two Brother Knights from Salisbury, NC and Statesville, NC to charter the corporation and start the radio network. Mike Brown served as the first Treasurer-Secretary for Carolina Catholic Radio. Today Carolina Catholic Radio reaches an estimated 500,000 people in western North Carolina and upstate South Carolina. With plan to acquire more stations along the I-85 and I-40 corridors, the network expects to reach almost 80% of Diocese of Charlotte and over 4 million people in the upcoming decade.
In 2017, the Council also began supporting Morgan Elementary with the Coats for Kids Program. Morgan Elementary is located in Clemmons, and each year approximately 60-100 children are in need of a warm coat to make it through the winter months. The Council conducts annual fundraising efforts purchase coats for these local children. In our first year, a substantial contribution of over $800 in coins and spare change was made by Vicki Driscoll, a parishioner and life-long supporter of the Knights of Columbus. She and her husband, the late Bill Driscoll, who appears on the Necrology Board and was a sixty-year member of the Knights of Columbus, collected the coins and spare change over their lifetime, ultimately donating it to Coats for Kids to help the less fortunate in our community. Each year since, the council has raised $1,800-$2,000 annually to support this program.
In 2018, a new Knight, Brother Mario D’Amico, joined the council. With a passion for bowling and mission to strike-out cancer, Mario and Grand Knight Bruce Jaworoski, began the annual Knights Bowl to Strike Out Cancer Fundraiser. Each year the council engages families and youth in our community to raise money for the Wake Forest Cancer Research Center. A bowl-a-thon is held at Northside Lanes in Winston-Salem to bring awareness to this cause. All proceeds collected stay in our community to fund local cancer research at Wake Forest. In its first year, the council raised over $3,000 for cancer research. Brother Mario D’Amico was awarded State Rookie of the Year. That same year, the Chris and Julie Ray Family were awarded State Family of the Year. The Council also received the Columbian Award and the State Charity Award.
n 2019, enthusiasm was at an all-time high. Under Grand Knight Gregg Eisenmann, the council had over 300 members and was one of the largest councils in the State of North Carolina. The Council was raising fund by volunteering as buffet staff in the Flow Automotive Club at Winston-Salem Dash baseball games. The Council also raised funds as parking attendants for the Winston-Salem Open tennis tournament. Through Wake Forest, the council had secured positions in Bridger Fieldhouse as club attendants during Wake Forest Football games. Proceeds benefited the LAMB Foundation. The Council conducted several successful parish Pancake Breakfasts and a potluck Parish Christmas Party with over 100 people attending. The Council also held the annual LAMB Awards Dinner where Past Grand Knight Jerry Bryant, his wife Barbara, and his family made what will be remembered as the best meatloaf dinner in the history of Council 9499 (and the District). In its second year, the Knights Bowl to Strike Out Council Event built in its previous success, raising over $6000 for the Wake Forest Cancer Research Center. Brother Joe Rogers was awarded the State Rookie of the Year Award for his passion in support of pro-life causes. The Brian and Mary Winfrey Family were also awarded the State Family of the Year Award. The Council received the Columbian Award and the Council Fraternity Award.
The Council Today
In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic changed daily life and brought many parish activities to halt. But not willing to let the coronavirus define us, and in true Council 9499 tradition, we improvised. In 1987, we held meetings in the concourse of the church because the family center had not yet been built. Almost 33 years later, we held our first Zoom Meeting, marking the first time a council meeting was conducted virtually. A Marian Icon visited the parish, and Brother Knights successfully livestreamed a prayer service on YouTube. Unable to meet in-person, the council began conducting a weekly virtual rosary. In June 2020, recognizing a need in our community, the council began quarterly Drive By Food Drives, collecting several thousand pounds of food and
raising several hundred dollars for the Clemmons Food Pantry, Samaritan Ministries, and Catholic Charities. All donations were collected through a drive-thru where participants did not need to leave their car to donate.
Today we’re continuing to improvise as we pray for a vaccine and a return to normal life. Since the pandemic began, council meetings have been conducted virtually. We are holding a weekly rosary via Zoom Meeting and where permissible, we are conducting socially-distanced events at the parish and in our community. Spiritual Enrichment Group, Adopt-a-Highway, Feed-the-Beast Shredder, 40 Days for Life, and Sidewalk Vigils for Life events continue to occur, but under social distancing guidelines. Other events, have been modified to comply with social distancing guidelines. To better reach the council and members of the parish, Brother Mike Skovera invested significant time and effort in refreshing the Council’s website. New functionalities were added to help us reach Brother Knights and prospective new members and conduct online fundraising.
In September, we conducted our second Drive By Food Drive to benefit the Clemmons Food Pantry, Samaritan Ministries, and Catholic Charities. Our new pastor, Father James Struhenberg, also asked us to help him find a place to store his books. The Council obliged by commissioning Sir Knight, Brother Bob Smith, to build, Father James a set of three bookshelves for his office.
October, the annual Trunk-or-Treat Halloween event was restructured as a drive-thru event. We also successfully conducted our first attempt at online fundraising. We collected $220 to buy Halloween Candy at Costco. In later months, the Coats for Kids would generate almost eight times as many online donations.
On October 31st, the council celebrated the Beatification of Father McGivney through morning prayers from the Liturgy of Hours and a special Father McGivney Beatification Mass held under social distancing guidelines. We also successfully raised over $1,900 for the Coats for Kids Program.
Despite less fans at Wake Forest football games and fewer opportunities to volunteer in support of LAMB, a recent partnership with Mary’s Hope to operate a support Dewey’s Bakery Holiday Shop promises help us continue supporting individuals with intellectual disabilities in our community.
As we await a return to normalcy, we will continue these and other council activities to the best of abilities until we can meet again in-person.
Council Awards:
- Star Council Award: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1994
- Columbian Award: 1993, 2001, 2004, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
- Distinguished Council Award: 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 2003
- Honor Council Award: 2002, 2004
State Awards:
- State Softball Champions: 1989, 1990, 1993
- State Basketball Champions: 1994, 1995, 1999
- State Volleyball Champions: 1998
- State Best Small Council Award: 1988
- State Best Medium Council Award: 1989
- State Best Large Council Award: 1990, 1994
- State Membership Award: 1988
- State Charity Award: 2016, 2019
- State Fraternity Award: 2020
- State Deputy Award: 1998, 2000
- State Church Program – RSVP Bingo (1988)
State Knight of the Year:
- John Harrison (1987-1988)
- Mike Radford (1988-1989)
State Family of the Year:
- (Lenny) Meyers Family (1999)
- (Chris Parker Family (2007)
- (Chris) Ray Family (2019)
- (Brian) Winfrey Family (2020)
State Rookie of the Year:
- Mario D’Amico (2019)
- Joe Rogers (2020)
State Golden Knight of the Year:
- Mike Brown (2016)
State Priest of the Year:
- Father Steve Hoyt (2016)
Supreme Awards:
- Family Program of the Year: Christmas Party (1996)
- Family Program of the Year: Family Fishing Tournament (1998)
- Family Program of the Year: Santa’s Workshop (1999)
- Family Program of the Year: Santa’s Workshop (2002)
District Leadership (District 11):
- Joram Thomas, District Deputy – 1998-2000
- Bob Nicolosi, District Deputy – 2005-2007
- Chris Parker, District Warden – 2005-2007
- Ron Schwartz, District Deputy – 20015-2020
- Gregg Eisenmann, District Warden – 2020-Present
State Leadership (North Carolina):
- John Harrison, Supreme Director – 1997 – TBD
Supreme Leadership:
- John Harrison, Supreme Director – TBD – 2010
Council Charter Members:
- James E. Allen
- James C. Heckel
- Frank R. Naples, Jr.
- Thomas A. Bohnert
- Kurt C. Heckert
- Robert J. Nowak, Jr.
- Rodney L. Booker
- Michael W. Heruska
- Robert J. Nowak, Sr.
- Albert Bruno
- Ronald H. Holmes
- Joseph R. Olah
- Thomas J. Callaghan
- Richard M. Human
- Donald F. Parker
- James F. Callahan
- Robert E. Hunt
- Ronald E. Parker
- Lawrence D. Chance
- Charles E. Lauer
- John R. Pickles
- John C. Clark
- John D. Lenzmeier
- Michael A. Radford
- Lawrence E. Cuneo
- James F. Madel
- Jeffory B. Rooney
- Everett C. Dougherty
- Robert G. McGee
- Charles T. Ryan
- Michael F. Facciolo
- Bruce B. McKillop
- John L. Stemper
- Samuel N. Ferguson
- Michael A. Michel
- William A. Sutton
- Robert L. Gearren
- Francis J. Monaghan
- Cecil W. Tice
- John A. Harrison, Jr.
- Joel T. Mousaw
- John J. Tomel
- William F. Haubrick
- Joseph Murphy
- Robert L. Vitelli
Council Grand Knights:
- John Harrison, Jr. – 1987-1988
- Michael A. Radford – 1988-1989
- Thomas A. Bohnert – 1989
- Robert L. Vitelli – 1990
- Robert A. Nowak, Sr. – 1990-1991
- Albert “Al” Bruno – 1991-1992
- Keith Tart – 1992-1993
- Joram Thomas – 1993-1994
- James Gildein – 1994-1995
- William J. O’Neill – 1995-1996
- Michael Farrell – 1996-1997
- Keith Hite – 1997
- Hank Shurtz – 1997-1998
- Leonard W. Meyers II – 1998-1999
- Thomas Schneider – 1999-2000
- Bruce Libke – 2000-2001
- David Chris Parker – 2001-2002
- Joseph Braeckel – 2002-2003
- James F. Callahan – 2003-2004
- Robert Nicolosi – 2004-2005
- Brian Sternecker – 2005-2006
- Jerome Hamziuk – 2006-2007
- Gerald Bryant – 2007-2008
- Robert H. Smith – 2008-2009
- Robert Duckworth – 2009-2010
- Hugh “Mac” McGaffigan – 2010-2011
- Robert M. Webber – 2011-2012
- David Adams – 2012-2013
- Ronald Schwartz – 2013-2014
- Dennis Monaghan – 2014-2015
- Dale Herbstritt – 2015-2016
- Thomas X. Runser – 2016-2017
- Joseph Muster – 2017-2018
- Bruce Jaworoski – 2018-2019
- Gregg Eisenmann – 2019-2020
- Matthew J. Hughes – 2020-Present
Father McGivney Spirit Award Recipients:
- PSD John Harrison
- Mike Facciolo
- PGK Bob Smith
- Carolos Iruela
- PGK Bob Webber
- PGK Jim Callahan
- PGK Dale Herbstritt
- Steve Carlough
- PGK Mac McGaffigan
Deceased Brother Knights:
- Charles B. West (1989)
- John E. Kelley (1990)
- Bruce B. McKillop (1993)
- John F. Parsons (1993)
- Anthony J. Patoni (1993)
- Charles R. Tate (1996)
- Francis J. Monaghan (1998)
- Frank P. Neuman (1998)
- Joseph R. Olah (1998)
- Joseph Buchholz (199)
- Christopher Joh Shanks (1999)
- Ray M. Farrell (2000)
- Josep F. Skurzynski (2001)
- Theodore Strickroth (2001)
- William S. Ketcham (2002)
- Joseph “Tom” Sheck (2002)
- William Killion (2003)
- Edmund P. Sullivan (2003)
- George H. Wayman (2003)
- Anthony G. Ange (2005)
- Ronald H. Holmes (2008)
- James T. O’Connell (2008)
- John W. Shanks (2008)
- Edward V. Staab (2008)
- Edward F. Brennan (2009)
- Michael L. Dodick (2009)
- Bernard F. Grass (2010)
- William E. Schowald (2010)
- Felix G. Spagnola (2010)
- Robert L. Vitelli (2010)
- Chauncey F. Farnach (2011)
- Vincent Rega (2011)
- Robert L. Gearrren (2012)
- Elmer J. Sitter (2012)
- PSD Rodney L. Booker (2013)
- Michael Cservenko (2013)
- Raymond R. Miller (2013)
- Elbert “Skip” Rawls (2013)
- Edward F. Sullivan (2013)
- Nate F. Giannini (2014)
- Michael J. Harwood (2014)
- Richard M. Human (2014)
- Jack J. Jordan (2014)
- Bruce M. Libke (2014)
- Norman G. Shumaker (2014)
- James P. Connors (2015)
- William A. Driscoll (2015)
- Joseph J. Klimczak (2015)
- James J. Robertson (2015)
- Henry Slide (2015)
- Charles A. Tabor (2015)
- PGK Albert Bruno (2017)
- Paul F. Ripp (2017)
- Robert “Bob” Triplett (2017)
- Brian M. Dickman (2018)
- Timothy J. Sullivan (2018)
- PGK Robert J. Nowak (2019)
- Winston Bell (2019)
- Jack Stemper (2020)
- Paul E. Kuhl (2020)
- Christopher F. Rossow (2020)