Knights of Columbus Newsletter
Tuolumne Council 2165
Sonora, California 95370
Volume III, Issue 8 — August 2013
Knight’s Table
Grand Knight’s Corner
Women of the United States Armed Forces –
Part 1
Thanks to all who attended the installation of
officers last month and to Al Pelligrini, assisted by
our new District Deputy, Al Liberato, who together
did a great job.
World War II transformed the United States into a
worldwide military and economic power. The roles
of women in WWII have influenced every segment
of our society. Women have developed and been
educated to compete at all levels of education,
business, science, engineering, medicine, religion,
government, senior military ranks, etc. We shall
take a brief look at the women who helped to create
these transitions.
In December 1941, there were only about 2,000
women serving in the military in the Army and
Navy Nurse Corps. By the end of WWII, 350,000
to 400,000 women were serving in the Army
(WAC), Navy (WAVES), Coast Guard (SPARS),
and the Marine Corps Women’s Reserve. The
Women’s Auxiliary Flying Squadron (WAFS) and
the Women’s Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) also
made their contributions.
The concept of women serving in the military
initially met with resistance from both the
government and the military. After much debate,
Congress created the Women’s Army Auxiliary
Corps (WAAC) on May 15, 1942. On July 30,
1942, President Roosevelt signed a bill authorizing
the Navy, Coast Guard, and Marine Corps to accept
women recruits. On the same day, the Navy
established the Women Accepted for Volunteer
Emergency Service (WAVES). In November 1942,
the Coast Guard established its Women’s Reserve
called SPARS (Semper Paratus-Always Ready). In
February 1943, the Marine Corps established the
(please continue on page 3)
God Bless All, Roger Stevens, Grand Knight
Announcements
 This month we celebrate the birthday of our
founder, Father Michael J. McGivney. He was
born one hundred and sixty-one years ago on
August 18, 1852 to Patrick and Mary McGivney
in Waterbury, Connecticut. Blessed be Father
McGivney.
 Our next regular meeting is Thursday, August 8,
at 7:00 p.m. in the Hall.
 Trash Pick Up: We have our permit to begin
trash pick up between Sierra Motors and the
downtown Sonora exit. We will view a Cal
Trans safety video at our meeting to certify we
know the safety rules for trash pick up. Knights
of Columbus Council 2165 will be displayed on
our sign.
 One member per month per Council
 We as a Council are to recruit at least one (1)
new member per month.
 Our Lady of Guadalupe Silver Rose Program

Supports Pro Life Efforts

Pilgrimage from Canada to Mexico

Three icons: one on the East Coast, one on
the Central U.S., and one on the West
Coast.

This is the first time it will be traveling
down the Central Valley

Sept 8: Stockton, location TBD,

Sept 9: St. Joseph Parish, details TBD.
 Tootsie Roll Drive third weekend in October
(ID Drive)
 August Birthdays:
Gregory Stephens - 8/07
Clint Parish - 8/22
U.S. Frank took golf lessons and began
playing with Wendell (sure that was a bowl of
laughs) plus joining a fly fishing club. He also
worked as a counselor with SCORE where
members are trained to serve as counselors,
advisors and mentors to aspiring entrepreneurs
and business owners. These services are
offered for free. Frank also worked for Black
Oak Casino as an auditor from 2001 to 2005.
He has been a Knight for 13 years and has
served as Treasurer, Financial Secretary and
Grand Knight.
Frank and Jan have three children (Krysia,
Jeffrey and Mike all living in Kent,
Washington) plus two grandchildren (Jacob and
Alexsia). They have just listed their home in
Sonora and will be moving to the Seattle area
to be close to family. Many thanks to you
Frank for your years of service in Council 2165
and we all wish you much happiness with your
new life in Seattle. May the peace of the Lord
be with you always.
Clay Sweeney - 8/23
Robert Icenogle -8/25
Trini Mercado Jr. - 8/30
George Farrell - 8/31
 Communion Breakfast every fifth Sunday of
month: This is a breakfast at one of the local
restaurants, wives included. The next fifth
Sunday will be September 29 – mark your
calendar. Details to follow next month.
 Service Program Personnel report due August 1.
 Information about each position is on
CaliforniaKnights.org or KofC.org. It gives an
explanation of each program.

Featured Knight Spotlight
Frank Kulawiak was born on
June 23, 1940 in Detroit,
Michigan. He attended
Catholic grammar and high
school in Detroit. Frank
moved to San Carlos in 1970,
but returned to Detroit in 1971
to marry Jan. Frank brought
Jan to California where he
worked as a Postal Inspector, retiring in 2000.
They then sold their home and moved to
Sonora to enjoy his retirement.
Frank and Jan did a great deal of traveling from
2005 to 2011 visiting Europe and much of the
Just like a Knight
A long time ago there were two brothers in the
local parish, Michael and Seamus O’Malley.
The brothers were often referred to as
despicable and it was not uncommon to hear
them referred to as horses’ posteriors. You see,
they had swindled the Church, foreclosed on an
orphanage, and cheated widows of their
pittance, all for the sake of a small profit. The
list is too long to cover.
One day Seamus becomes very ill and suddenly
dies. One of the first things Michael does is to
visit their priest, Sir Knight Father McMann.
He addresses the Father, “Now here’s what I
will be wanting. You’ll be givin’ the eulogy
for me brother Seamus and in that eulogy
you’ll be sayin’ that Seamus was truly a saint
and I’ll be makin’ a generous donation to the
parish.” Father McMann tells him, “I can’t do
that, it would be a lie.” “Don’t be too
impetuous, Father, you know I hold the
Page 2 of 6
mortgage on the parish school and you’ll do as
I ask, or I shall foreclose. Now what do you
say?” retorts Michael O’Malley.
Father McMann thinks about it for a moment
and then says, “And if I pledge to say those
words, then you’ll sign our school note free and
clear, right now, and make a donation to the
parish?” Michael smiles and says “Done.” And
he signs the note and gives Father a check...
The next morning at the funeral Mass Father
McMann solemnly begins his eulogy, “Seamus
O’Malley was a mean-spirited spiteful,
penurious, lying, cheating, arrogant and a
hateful excuse for a human being. But in
comparison to his brother, Michael, Seamus
O’Malley was a saint.”
By the Way
Blessings relate to the act of praying for divine
protection or favor, a wish for happiness. A
blessing is used to express a spiritual wish that good
fortune may go with the person or to a specific
object, such as a house. Blessings are commonly
used at a meal.
Knight’s Table
(continued from page 1)
Marine Corps Women’s Reserve. On July 2, 1943,
the WAAC became the Women’s Army Corps
(WAC). A limited number of women served in the
WAFS and WASPS.
This section of the series will be presented in three
parts: Part 1 – U.S. Women’s Army Corps and U.S.
WAVES; followed by Part 2 –U.S. Coast Guard
SPARs and U.S. Marine Corps Women’s Reserve,
followed by Part 3 – Women’s Auxiliary Flying
Squadron (WAFS) and the Women’s Air Force
Service Pilots (WASP).
If you don’t learn to laugh at trouble, you won’t
have anything to laugh at when you’re old.
U.S. Women’s Army Corps
Unknown
Prayers for the Sick and Infirm
St. Francis de Salles wrote “The prayer of the sick
person is his patience and his acceptance of his
sickness for the love of Jesus Christ. Make sickness
itself a prayer, for there is none more powerful,
save martyrdom!” Amen
In Memoriam
May the souls of all of the faithful who have
departed rest in peace with the Lord.
Blessings and Prayers
Over the years blessings and prayers have been
used as interchangeable words. Prayers relate to the
act of praying or asking a favor. A prayer is an
earnest request or entreaty, the offering of
adoration, contrition or thanksgiving to God.
Recruits for the WAC were required to be U.S.
citizens, 21 to 45 years of age, at least five feet tall,
weigh more than 100 pounds, have completed at
least two years of high school, have no dependents,
have a police check, and supply references. Both
the original WAAC organization and then the WAC
were based upon comparable British units. As soon
as new recruits reported for duty, they were
interviewed, fitted for uniforms, assigned to
companies and barracks, and given necessary
inoculations. A physical training manual, published
by the War Department, was designed to improve
the physical abilities of the recruits. The manual
began by telling the women their primary
responsibility: “Your Job: Replace Men. Be
Ready to Take Over.” After boot training, the
women were assigned mainly to clerical duties.
Within a short period of time, they proved their
capabilities and were assigned to most of the
Army’s military specialties. Approximately
150,000 women served with the WAC during
WWII. The Army estimated that these women
released seven divisions of men for combat.
African-American women were accepted in the
WAAC and WAC from the beginning. After their
initial training, African-American women were
assigned to all-African-American units. Social
Page 3 of 6
functions were also segregated. African-American
women were not admitted to serve in the WAVES
and SPARS until November 1944. They were not
accepted by the Marine Corps or the WASPs.
While most WAC served in the continental U.S., by
1944 about 5,500 WAC were sent to South Pacific
bases and another 400 were sent to the ChinaBurma-India areas. High ranking Army Generals
thought highly of the WAC capabilities and
proposed that women be included in the draft.
General McArthur referred to the WACs as his
“best soldiers.” The hostilities ended in Europe on
May 8, 1945, VE Day. Hostilities in the Pacific
ended August 15, 945 with the official surrender of
Japan on September 2, 1945. The WAC was
disbanded in 1978. Women converted their
Military Occupation Specialties (MOS) to the
regular Army. Since 1994, women have been
allowed to volunteer in combat situations and have
served in the same units as men.
St. Patrick’s is fortunate to have a former member
of the Women’s Army Corps in residence: Mrs.
Deborah Rogers Cushman. She enlisted in the
WACs during the Vietnam War. At that time, the
Army recruited two women candidates from each
state to undergo men’s basic training to evaluate the
possibility of changing how women were trained.
She was one of the women from Nevada. Inducted
in Oakland and sent to Fort Jackson, South
Carolina, she and the other women recruits joined
some 6,000 male recruits. Her stories of ‘boot
camp’ rival our own. “Up at 0500 hours, dress in
olive drab fatigues, 10 mile marches carrying 40
pound field packs, three days and nights on bivouac
in pup tents in the middle of the rainy season.
Never saw such large raindrops, but was glad I took
note of the necessity of digging a deep trench
around my tent with my entrenching tool. It poured
and flooded some of the women’s tents who didn’t
dig deep enough. I earned $0.25 per can for
opening my fellow recruits’ C-ration cans that were
dropped from a helicopter, as I was one of those
who could operate a P-38.”
“The women went to the firing range and most of
them were a pretty good shot with an M-16 rifle. I
was the only one in my company that did not panic
in the gas chamber and received recognition for that
– not a pleasant experience.”
Debbie reports that the women did well in most
aspects of the basic training. The upper body
physical training was the most difficult and the
women did not score quite as high as the men in
that category. After eight weeks of training, the
Army evaluated the results and modified women’s
basic training at Fort Jackson where it is still
practiced today.
She continued her Army career as a Medical
Technologist/Specialist 4 in Germany at the 10th
Medical Laboratory in histopathology where she
learned a great deal of anatomy and pathology. She
suffered a head injury that distorted her vision
which prevented her from continuing medical
technology. After discharge from the Army, she
finished her college degree in another field.
Now for a few of her service-related skills: “Can
cohabitate with 13 women – broke up a fight once;
can make a bed with hospital corners that you can
bounce a quarter off of; can keep a latrine spotless,
know how to use a toothbrush; can spit shine
combat boots, high heels or dress quarters; can
polish brass to a shining gleam; can march with
precision and return a proper salute; can speak and
interpret military language.”
By the way, she still wears that P-38 on her key
chain. The next time you meet our Debbie, a proper
salute is in order.
U.S. Navy WAVES
The WAVES were not the first women to serve in
the Navy. The Navy Nurse Corps was established
in 1908. The Naval Reserve Act of 1925 excluded
women from naval service; but during WWII, the
Navy had a demanding need to replace men for
combat duty. In July 1942, the Women Accepted
for Voluntary Service (WAVES) was created.
From the beginning the WAVES were a part of the
Navy. Women held the same ratings and ranks as
male personnel, received the same pay as men of
equal rank, and were subject to the same military
discipline. The Navy set high standards for recruits.
They had to be U.S. citizens, single, at least 20
years of age, at least five feet tall, weigh at least 95
pounds, and pass the Navy physical. Enlisted must
have graduated from high school and officers must
have a college degree. Enlistments were for the
duration of the war plus six months.
After their basic boot training and specialty
training, WAVES served in a variety of positions
Page 4 of 6
including clerical, aviation specialties, medical
professions, communications, intelligence,
quartermasters, laboratory technicians, weapons
instructors, and the Judge Advocates Office.
WAVES could not serve aboard combat ships or
aircraft overseas in WWII. Late in WWII, they
served in some U.S. possessions. The Navy did not
initially accept African-American women, but from
the fall of 1944 onwards, the WAVES accepted
African-American women into their ranks.
Approximately 90,000 women became WAVES
during WWII; 8,000 were officers.
VE Day, May 8, 1945, ended hostilities in Europe.
VJ Day, August 15, 1945 marked the end of
hostilities with Japan. On September 2, 1945 Japan
officially signed the Articles of Surrender aboard
the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, Japan, bringing
WWII to an official end.
On June 12, 1948, the Women’s Armed Service
Integration Act allowed women to serve in the
regular NAVY and the Naval Reserves. The
WAVES became obsolete; however, even today
many people think of female naval personnel as the
WAVES. Women serve as equals in all branches of
the NAVY. On October 24, 1978, the Navy began
assigning women to ships. During 1979, 55 officers
and 375 enlisted were assigned to 21 ships. This
marked the beginning of our modern Navy where
men and women protect our country working side
by side.

ABOUT OUR FAITH

form of prayer as we strive to ‘see and be’ the
presence of Jesus to everyone we meet during the
course of our day. Jesus tells his disciples and us
to, “Ask and you will receive, seek and you will
find.”
What do you expect to find? Jesus also tells us that
God will send the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to
those who ask Him. It is this wisdom of the Holy
Spirit that will act as a moral compass for our daily
actions. When we are praying or thinking about a
moral decision in our lives, it is always a good rule
of thumb to ask ourselves if we can pray better after
our action. Will what we decide to do drive the
Lord away from us or will we be able to welcome
Him into our hearts and minds as part of our daily
prayer?
I am sure we have all had what we consider
unanswered prayers in our lives. I know I have.
Quite possibly they were for a friend or relative
who was sick or had some other issue going on. It
reminds me of a quote from a song of Country
Western singer Garth Brooks. “Remember, when
you’re talking to the man upstairs that just because
He doesn’t answer doesn’t mean He doesn’t care.”
God does hear our unanswered prayers. It is in our
constant dialog with God and by the wisdom of the
Holy Spirit that we come to know more fully each
day the words of the Our Father, “Thy kingdom
come, Thy will be done on Earth as it is in
Heaven.”
God Bless. Deacon Mike
Knights of Columbus Insurance
Chaplain’s Message
Brother Knights: “Are we there yet? Are we there
yet?” How many times did we utter this phrase as a
child or hear it as a parent or grandparent? This
phrase kept popping into my mind after last week’s
scripture readings about prayer and the persistence
of prayer in our lives. Father Abraham certainly
was persistent in his attempt to save Sodom and
Gomorrah.
I think the message to us is not the bargaining
aspect, but that Abraham could carry on such a
conversation with his Lord God. I would suggest
that a better word for persistence would be
constant. All of our activities each day should be a
LTC is an important piece of the puzzle
There are many financial consultants and
retirement authorities who emphasize the need
for a long-term care (LTC) product for estate
preservation and family protection as you near
or attain the age of 60.
While many commercial life insurance
companies have gotten out of the long-term
care business, the Knights of Columbus
considers LTC a very important piece of the
family protection puzzle. The Order has been
Page 5 of 6
actively offering our members this product for
nearly 15 years without a single premium
increase on current policyholders. Members
who wisely purchased an LTC plan from the
Knights in 2000 are still paying the same
premiums today. Even better, our LTC
coverage is backed by the full strength of the
Order, which remains rooted in our strong
Catholic values. Talk about stability when it
counts.
Remember, qualifying for long-term care
policies is based on your health, and you most
likely will never be any healthier than you are
today.
Fraternally, Your Brother and Field Agent,
If we have not spoken about your need for LTC
coverage in your family portfolio, please take
some time out of your schedule to meet with
me.
Page 6 of 6
Bill Labiak
Phone: 209.712.6723
Email: [email protected]