Our parish is home to a number of veterans. Many serve as officers in local veterans organizations at a local, district and state level. You would expect no less from members of a Fourth Degree Assembly, our Patriotic Order of the Knights of Columbus.
Each year, since 2006, the Assembly members have promoted a Veterans’ Day weekend fundraiser. Their project this year benefits recent amputees who have returned from Afghanistan and other countries. They are now in the hospital at Ft. Bragg or Camp Lejeune.
Life as an in-patient at a military hospital is, well… It’s okay. The care is great, but no matter what they do to make a patient comfortable, it is not home. Imagine being there as an amputee. They have self doubt, constant pain, and a longing to be with family. But, they are confined to the hospital at Christmas and the hospital is winding down for the holidays. It will soon be a very lonely place. Getting these service men and women out of the hospital takes money. Many don’t have enough to get home and back for more treatment.
We, the men of the Knights of Columbus, have a project to get them home. Working with the Military Order of the Purple Heart, we raise money around Veterans’ Day. The parishioners have been very generous each year and this year donated over $3,200. What we collect is donated as a gift from the people of St. Thomas More Catholic Church.
Did you know that The Military Order of the Purple Heart matches each dollar collected?
Similar collections are taken throughout North and South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Puerto Rico are doing the same and thousands of dollars were collected. Last year, 399 amputees were sent home through this effort.
We appreciate the generosity of the parish and want to thank the veterans of the assembly for continuing this annual event in Chapel Hill. Peace on Earth and Good Will to All Men.
