b'NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE, continuedMardi Gras at St Francis de SalesAllaine Dela Cruz, Grand Knight for LumenSusan Garrett leads MarthasCloset volunteers in prayer Prior to opening for business. Christi Council 14625, out of St. Francis deMarthas Closet sponsored by 13808 Sales in Mableton, GA reports on a rather suc-cessful event held by Squires Circle # 5809. Christ Our King and Savior, GreensboroOn February 23, 2020, Quinquagesima Sun- Marthas Closet is a program of the St. Vincent de Paul Society (SVdP) at day (the traditional name for the Sunday be- Christ Our King and Savior Catholic Church in Greensboro, GA. This program fore Ash Wednesday), the Fr. Kenneth Walkeroperates on a shoestring and serves the residents of Hancock County, one of Circle of the Columbian Squires, sponsored bythe poorest counties in Georgia.Knights of Columbus Lumen Christi CouncilMarthas Closet was founded several years ago by Susan Garrett, a Vincen-# 14625, carried out its largest, most ambi- tian, who lives in Hancock County. She saw the plight of many residents and tious, first annual fundraiser party for its homestarted distributing food and clothing from the trunk of her car. Eventually, free parish. The Squires were fortunate enough tospace was obtained through the Dept of Children and Family Services and a have Joseph Yorio, District Deputy for Districtstorefront location was opened in Sparta to offer free clothing, shoes, house-12, and State Squires Director Thaddeus Mchold items and toiletries that cannot be obtained with food stamps.Last year, Caustland in attendance for the event. Marthas Closet served approximately 1,000 clients, offering them dignity and The Circle held a large Mardi Gras party injoy and letting them know that God loves all his children.the gym of St. Francis de Sales Church in Ma- Marthas Closet could not exist and function bleton.Thepartyfeaturedbreakfast,whichwithoutanetworkoffriends,includingthe included purple and green pancakes with sau- Pope John Paul II Council 13808 of the Knights sages,aswellasmanymade-from-scratchof Columbus This year Council 13808 voted to gamesforthechildrenoftheparish,manydesignateMarthasCloset,throughtheSVdP ofwhichwerereligiously-themed.WinnersSociety, and presented a check in May for $896.of these games were awarded tickets, whereAnother feature of the raffle is that Councils theycouldthenexchangethemforprizes,can nominate charitable organizations for grants such as rosaries, Catholic stickers, and manyfrom the Knights of Columbus. Council 13808 Lenten-themed objects. applied for a grant on behalf of Marthas Closet and our prayers were our ap-This event is only one of many that the Fr.answered when Kenneth Walker circle has undertaken; in theplication was approved. the Knights of Colum- GKMarkHolihan(L)andPGK Jim Blankenheim present a $3,500 five years since its formation, the Circle hasbus were pleased to present SVdP and Marthascheck to Susan Garrett, founder of performed multiple service projects, like wash- Closet with a check for $3,500.Marthas Closet.ing the pastors car, and has often assisted its sponsoring Knights of Columbus Council withUltrasound Dedication: St Francis of Assisi Council 11746their own events, such as the yearly Lenten Soup fundraisers and All Saints Party.The idea for the event originated in the cir-cles desire to create a new, annual party for theenjoymentofthechurchsparishioners. Through the generous contributions of time, money,andideasfrommanySquiresand their families, this idea, after about a month of preparation, was able to become a reality. In the end, the Squires raised $264.97 and will be using the money for their upcoming spiritual retreat to the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sac-rament in Hanceville, Alabama.Safe to say that the aforementioned Hancev-ille trip has been postponed. We hope to see photos and a write up on the trip in next years Knightlife. Past Grand Knight Ron Chimel, Kathy Davis - Georgia Mountain Pregnancy Center Exec Director,Health Ser-vices Director Paul Zock, Fraternal Benefits Agent Russell Cornell, DD22 Greg Bohling12111'