DODGE CITY -- Sacred Heart Council 2955 of the Knights of Columbus in Dodge City, associated with the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe parish, volunteered 7,042 hours of service and gave $42,190 to a wide array of programs and activities to benefit the Catholic Church, the community, families and youth during 2004.

"We are proud of our achievements, as we’ve worked hard to strengthen our Church and community and come to the aid of those less fortunate," said Bob Waldman, grand knight (chief executive) of Sacred Heart council.

"But we know we can do even more by expanding our order. That is why we have launched a major membership recruitment effort with the theme ‘Experience of a Lifetime’ in Dodge," Waldman said. "We are inviting every eligible Catholic man in Dodge City to truly have the experience of a lifetime by joining the Knights of Columbus and sharing the benefits of membership in the Order with his family."

The Knights of Columbus is a Catholic family fraternal service organization founded in 1882 at St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, Conn. by Father Michael I. McGivney. The Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints recently accepted for consideration his cause for canonization. Today there are nearly 1.7 million members in some 13,000 local councils in the United States, Canada, Mexico and many other countries.

The Knights of Columbus was officially established in Dodge City in 1946. Today there are 501 members in Sacred Heart Counci1 2955. For membership information, call Bob Waldman at (620) 225-1413 or Tim Burke at (620) 227-5455.