South Hills Knights of Columbus Council celebrates 75th anniversary
The Knights of Columbus South Hills Council No. 3084 is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.
To mark the milestone, an anniversary dinner was held March 23 at St. Thomas More Church in Bethel Park.
A number of archives were available for perusal, including the minutes of the first meeting of the council
“I got chills going through it,” said Douglas Derda, chancellor. “It shows the progression from guys getting together in a basement at St. Bernard’s, going all the way to the incorporation and their official first meeting. It’s really neat to see how they progressed the whole way through.”
Founded in 1948, the South Hills club serves four parishes – Resurrection, Our Lady of Hope, St Catherine Laboure and St. Paul of the Cross.
The Knights of Columbus national organization was formed in 1882 in New Haven, Conn.
Since those early days, it has been inspired by the principles of charity, unity, fraternity and patriotism.
“The special part about it is that not too many organizations make it to 75 years,” said Derda, a member since 2019. “Not too many make it to 25 anymore. So, being able to join an organization that has so much history to it has been an incredible experience.”
The club has 200 members, which could be key to the group’s longevity.
“It comes down to personality,” Derda said. “When you join the Knights, you’re looking to serve. We’ve been able to fill that need that Catholic men have. They want to serve their community., They want to serve their parish. They want to do more. We’ve been able to do that through the Knights. Everything that I’ve been involved with has been incredibly rewarding spiritually, physically and mentally. It’s a very well-rounded organization.”
Derda said that the council’s presence on social media has boosted its visibility. Plus, membership is growing because so many men are seeking a fraternal organization to join.
“They’re looking for a brotherhood that’s well-established,” he said. “We absolutely bring that.”
Activities in which the organization is involved are many.
Recently, members helped in the building of a new chapel at Seton-LaSalle High School.
“They asked the Knights if we would help with the labor so they could cut down on costs,” Derda said. “We were able to go in and help demolish two classrooms. Seeing it transition from two old classrooms to a beautiful new chapel has been incredible. It is gorgeous.”
The Knights also were able to repurpose pews for the chapel from a church that had closed.
Another project in which they were involved was supplying and installing Miraculous Medal reliefs, which hang in every classroom of Seton LaSalle and South Hills Catholic Academy.
Members also replaced the kneelers at St. Thomas More Church and this summer plan to work on renovations to the Lamb of God Chapel.
The organization also hosts the Grace Gaita Memorial Spaghetti Dinner to raise money for two incoming Bishop Canevin High School students who have a love of the marching band and two incoming students from Ave Maria Academy. The first two dinners have raised more than $40,000 for the scholarships.
The organization supports various pro-life organizations and activities, provides scholarships for Catholic school students and seminarians, hosts memorial Masses and holy hours and helps with the St. Winifred Food Pantry.
Financial, material and service support is provided to the four parishes the Knights serve, which ranges from helping to make needed repairs, pulling weeds and cleaning up prayer gardens to sponsoring educational and social events, including the annual family picnic.
The organization also has a golf league.
The group meets at 7 p.m. the first Wednesday of every month at Harkins Hall in St. Anne Church in Castle Shannon on the border of Mt. Lebanon. New members are always welcome.
Men who are in good standing in a Catholic parish can do so through southillsknights.com.
“Word is getting around that we have a vibrant community,” Derda said.