Council 1477 became noted for its strong commitment to service. During World War II, the council raised thousands of dollars through war stamp drives, and in 1946 they took over promotion of Notre Dame’s famous “Bengal Bouts,” a spring boxing tournament used to raise funds for the Holy Cross Missions in East Bengal, Pakistan. Although promoting the bouts took months of planning from up to 50 Knights, they were a tremendous success and raised as much as $7,000 annually. Another goal of the council from its inception was to have its own building on campus. The council began setting aside funds in 1919, and by 1931 their building fund had grown to $37,000. When the Knights’ savings were nearly wiped out during the Great Depression, the council established a reorganized building corporation with a seven-member board of directors to oversee its finances. Under the keen guidance of treasurer Eli Shaheen, an experienced Knight who had been active in local councils, the building corporation’s investments paid large dividends. Net gains soon reached six figures, and in 1967 the Knights used those funds to make a sizable donation to the university for scholarships for minorities. In return, the council received a lifetime lease on Notre Dame’s old post office, a prominent building in the heart of campus that has been home to the council for the past four decades. A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY By its 50th anniversary, Council 1477 had grown to 1,100 registered members. Past Grand Knight (1974-5) Thomas V. Dechant recalls that when he arrived at Notre Dame in 1970, the council was booming. “We would do a good job with initiating the freshmen, and we would traditionally get 100 or so every year,” said Dechant, who is a past state deputy of Kansas (1988-90) and son of Past Supreme Knight Virgil C. Dechant. “When I was grand knight, we initiated 137 members that year, and that was a record.” Members were extremely involved and devoted, Dechant said, with activities ranging from social gatherings to service projects to fundraisers — in particular selling steak sandwiches before home football games. Today, Council 1477 continues its famous steak sales, which routinely net more than $50,000 a year in profit, all of which goes to charity. Last year, the council expanded the program to include the delivery of “steak grams” for St. Valentine’s Day. The primary beneficiaries of the council’s efforts are Corvilla, a local home for people with intellectual disabilities, and Gibault, a program started by the Indiana State Council for troubled youth. Council members also prepare a Thanksgiving meal for Corvilla residents, work with Habitat for Humanity and assist other local charities. Offering college students an opportunity to be involved in such activities alongside other young men who share their beliefs has been the key to the council’s success and longevity, said current Grand Knight Dennis Malloy. “Life is about more than just one thing, whether it is service or your faith life or your work,” Malloy said. “I think the Knights allow people to be able to start combining those aspects of their life — to do service in a religious context and to have that sense of fraternity.” While known primarily for its service projects and fundraising, 12 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦
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Council 1477 also made headlines in 2009 when it released a statement expressing “sadness and disappointment” over Notre Dame’s decision to honor President Barack Obama at the university’s commencement. The Knights stated their disagreement with the president’s stance on abortion and addressed how his involvement at graduation would affect the Catholic students of Notre Dame. “The council was not pleased with how the events were playing out, how Notre Dame was represented in the media and what that meant for culture here on campus,” said Malloy, who was one of the Knights who helped craft the statement. “We wanted to say that we were concerned, and we wanted to do something about it, which was making a statement and getting people involved in prayer.”
Below: Members of Our Lady of the Skies Council 8200 at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., chop wood for a woman facing an unplanned pregnancy. Above right: Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson stands with members of Harvard University’s Pope John Paul II Council 14188, winner of the Outstanding College Council award, at the College Conference Awards banquet Oct. 3, 2009. Bottom right: A delegate from The Citadel Council 6900 in Charleston, S.C., views a portrait of Father Michael J. McGivney during a tour of the Knights of Columbus Museum during the 2006 College Council Conference.