Another great council tradition continues with our Adult Christmas Party for members of our Council and Ladies Auxiliary on Saturday, December 17th at 6 p.m., jointly hosted with the Fourth Degree Sir Knights of Mother Cabrini Assembly.

We'll have a complimentary (free!), informal, but very tasty hot buffet dinner including roast beef, sausage with broccoli rabe, roast chicken, and other favorites. There will also be a cash bar and, for a special treat, members of our Ladies Auxiliary will once again be putting out a great spread for the dessert table.

All we ask is that each person bring a gift for the less fortunate in our community, to brighten their Christmas season by helping them put good meals on the table for their families.

This year we are once again collecting donations for the St. James the Apostle Church Food Pantry. The pantry is well stocked with canned goods and other non-perishables, but what they need is supermarket gift cards so families can buy perishable items like milk, meats, fresh vegetables and frozen foods, which the pantry cannot stock.

So, please bring ShopRite or Tops gift cards to our party, and we will present them to St. James on behalf of the Knights and our families. The suggested donation is $20 per person, but be as generous as you like.

Since we started this tradition, we've collected over $12,000 in donations to those in need. So let's show our Christmas spirit and do it again for our parish and our community!

Donate by Appointment Only

Donors and Volunteers Needed

The NY Blood Center has declared a BLOOD SUPPLY EMERGENCY. Because of the holidays and the lingering effects of the pandemic, the blood inventory is again at critical 1-2 day supply.

This is our 25th anniversary of hosting blood drives. In those 25 years you've donated 3,861 pints. In that time, we’ve also had three bone marrow registry drives with one known match. We thank you for your generous gifts and helping fill a life-sustaining need.

We’re asking you once again to step up and join us at our winter holiday blood drive, set for FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2022 from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Carmel Veterans of Foreign Wars hall, located at 32 Gleneida Avenue (Route 52).

As with last few blood drives, donation will be BY APPOINTMENT ONLY.

To make an appointment via the internet, please visit the NY Blood Center web site Donor Portal by clicking here.

Or to schedule an appointment by phone, please call 1-800-933-2566.

We’re sorry to announce that because of current restrictions, we still have to forgo our much talked about hot and cold buffet. But we’re happy to announce the return of the cherished NY Blood Center holiday socks for each donation!

We hope you can once again join our members, along with the Driscoll Lodge of the FOP and local New York City firefighters, in this absolutely critical blood drive.

Any questions or concerns, or if you wish to volunteer, please call GK Tim McDonald at 845-225-6318 or Denis Hanrahan at 845-300-0428, or visit www.nybc.org.

Join us for our Seventh Annual James "J.O." O'Neill Memorial Men's Beefsteak Dinner on Saturday, January 21, 2023!

Doors open at 3 p.m. for the afternoon playoff game and cash bar. Dinner at halftime of the first game (approx. 6 p.m.) includes gourmet filet mignon, fries, draft beer or wine, dessert and coffee. Stay after dinner and watch the evening playoff game with us.

$60 if prepaid by Jan. 15 - $70 after Jan. 15 and at the door (unless we're sold out).

Click here to buy tickets on Eventbrite or mail your check and list of guests to: BEEFSTEAK, KofC Council 6318, 10 Fair Street, Carmel NY 10512.

IMPORTANT NOTE: To make this fundraiser a success, we need donations of items for our live auction and raffle table, including sporting event tickets, theater tickets, gift certificates to local restaurants and other businesses, items for gift baskets, and stays in vacation homes. Please contact GK Tim about any donations you may be interested in making or soliciting for us.

On the Monday before Thanksgiving, we assisted people in need by distributing 50 turkeys and 50 supermarket gift cards (valued at over $2,500) through Putnam's Community Opportunity Program (C.A.P.). We sourced and purchased the turkeys (thanks Rich Dambra!) and arranged for their distribution to those in need by C.A.P. in Brewster.

That same day, we distributed over 60 meals to the elderly in partnership with the Putnam County Office of Senior Resources. Our Kitchen Crew roasted turkeys and made homemade turkey noodle soup. They also made hearty meat sauce and baked ziti. Then they packaged generous portions of both along with fresh dinner rolls for each senior who requested a meal. Our members also delivered the meals to the homes of seniors who were unable to pick them up from the Council.

At his request, the parishioners of St. James generously donated over 100 Christmas gifts for the children of those deployed troops. Then it was up to our Council to get them to the kids -- and fast!

So a group of Council officers obtained the necessary packing materials and carefully packaged all of the gifts in nine large shipping boxes, separated for delivery to the appropriate units at the base. Then they drove the boxes to Yorktown Heights for shipment by FedEx to Fort Campbell so that they'd arrive in time for distribution to the children at the units' Christmas parties.

These are just three of the many "behind the scenes" type of tasks that we regularly do to help our parish, our community, and those who serve us in a variety of capacities.

A little rain could not dampen our holiday spirit! Hundreds of people had a fantastic time enjoying a host of Christmas activities in and around our Council on Saturday, December 3rd. Our contributions to Carmel's annual Holiday on the Lake made it possibly the best one ever!

Our Ladies Auxiliary did an incredible job pulling off their second "Our Christmas Village." There were lots of great vendors, food trucks, a chili contest, unbelievable decorations, and fun for all fun both inside and outside our Council hall. Cookies & Milk with Santa and Candy Bingo were huge hits with local families.

In the afternoon, our Council held another festive Children's Christmas Part, serving up a homemade hot and tasty dinner for the kids (and their parents and grandparents), as well as for the volunteers who helped us out with Holiday on the Lake.

Then we scrambled to put together our Council's beautiful parade float and assemble 5,000 glow necklaces, and then get them all down to the Paladin Center in time to step off in the Parade of Lights. We were once again one of the parade's lead attractions, with Mr. & Mrs. Claus riding in the sled on our float, and our Council's elves handing out all of those glow necklaces to the thousands of spectators lining the parade route.

Making multiple events on one day such a success took a tremendous effort by our Council members and Ladies Auxiliary, both in the planning and in the execution. Thanks to everyone who pitched in a lot or a little, with special thanks to Ladies Auxiliary President Kim Crecco and to Lecturer Anthony Falco for heading-up the teams of volunteers that made it all happen.

Not surprisingly, the local press took notice of our accomplishments. Enjoy the extensive photo coverage below, which appeared on the front and back pages of the December 7th edition of the Putnam County Times.

The next meeting of Mother Cabrini Assembly will be Thursday, December 15th at our Council.

The meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. It will be held upstairs as there will be another event in our Council Hall at that time.

Remember, a full calendar of events can always be found on our website: carmelknights.org under the Upcoming Events tab. And don't forget to "like" our Facebook page for up-to-the minute announcements, photos, event listings, and items of interest.