Council Officers
Grand Knight
Matt Riley
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Recorder
(vacant)
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Advocate
Benito Almojuela
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Outside Guard
Ric Dippner
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Chaplain
Rev. Frank Lowe
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Financial
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Treasurer
Jack Sauter
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Chancellor
Ted Dzierzek
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1-Year Trustee
Mark Lanca
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2-Year Trustee
Will Irwin
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3-Year Trustee
Rick Wolff
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District Deputy
Eddie Ruiz
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(LINK TO DUTIES OF COUNCIL OFFICERS)
History of Knights of Columbus Council #3583 of Palm Springs, CA
Palm Springs Council #3583 was founded in February 1953, but the Council's early years are currently unclear because Council records before about 1983 have been lost or misplaced. Current (2012) Financial Secretary Frank Castner recalls attending Council meetings 1983-1985 with then Financial Secretary Dick Krings, Isodora (Augie) Morales, Frank Kingston, and Robert Rech.
In 1985, Council #3583 was declared inactive and had its membership transferred to the Desert Hot Springs Council (#9497) in 1985 due to lack of members and activities. Krings transferred to Desert Hot Springs and assumed the Financial Secretary position in their council.
In 1998, Msgr. Malachy McGinn, then pastor of St. Theresa Church in Palm Springs, asked several members of his parish to try to reactivate Council #3583. Mark Altmar, who was the math and computer teacher at St. Theresa School at the time, took the lead and contacted a number of members from the 1983 Council list. Altmar became Grand Knight. According to Altmar, the 28 members of the reactivated Council #3583 were:
Lee Abbamondi, Mark Altmar. Robert Altmar, Bob Bayne, John Bertram, Dan Bennett, Dale Bolls, Ron Bridges, Richard Broadie, Frank Castner, Michael Chormicle, Joe Deisenroth, Frank Ercoli, Gilbert Fraide, Jack Graff, Roy Hoffman, Frank Kingston, Richard Krings, Richard Kutzner, Josef Luptowitz, Ted Mertens, Isodora (Augie) Morales, John Novales, Robert Rech, Joe Salas, Jack Sauter, John Speldrich, and Christopher West.
Monthly meetings were held in the computer lab at St. Theresa’s School. The first meetings centered on discussions of activities that would involve the parish and provide revenue for the council. By the fall of 1999 the Council had established a basic calendar of activities that included a monthly fish fry and breakfast. The first event as a reactivated council was a breakfast held on Sunday October 23, 1999.
Originally the council had a breakfast on Sunday of the same weekend as monthly fish frys, but the breakfasts were poorly attended, very expensive to put on, and were terminated. But in 2003 the council expanded the fish fry schedule to include Ash Wednesday and every Friday during Lent except Good Friday. The fish frys have proved very successful as fund raisers, but even more importantly, they are an opportunity for members of the Palm Springs parishes to gather for fellowship. In fact, these events may be the only opportunity some of our parishioners have to get out and meet with others in a purely social atmosphere.
The fish fry menu has continued to develop over the years and provides our guests with an excellent meal at a very reasonable price. In 2003 the council added a combo plate with shrimp and clams to the menu and in 2004 clam chowder was added. Fish tacos were later added as an alternative, a child’s plate with macaroni and cheese, a cioppino soup, and a salmon dinner.
At each fish fry the Council hosts a 50/50 drawing for support of the National Wheelchair Foundation that is a program supported by the Knights of Columbus worldwide charities. The Council has also designated a portion of the proceeds from these dinners for various charities in the Valley including the Well in the Desert and the CCD education program at St. Theresa.
Today (2013) Knights of Columbus Council #3583 has grown to approximately 120 members, and continues to directly serve the parish communities of the City of Palm Springs (Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Solitude, and St. Theresa’s), and continues to support many charitable causes throughout the Coachella Valley.
GRAND KNIGHTS
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E. E. Terieau 1952-53
Robert K. Rech 1953-54 Thomas E. Selman 1954-55 Frank A. Muller 1955-56 Oscar Levert 1956-57 Donald Ross 1957-58 Richard J. Krings 1958-59 Joseph A. Garcia 1959-60 Joseph A. Weiger 1960-61 John R. Danchak 1961-62 John T. Kane 1962-63 Stanley J. Janiuk 1963-64 John T. Kane 1964-65 David C. Worman 1965-66 Gerald E. Campbell 1966-67 Stanley L. Phillips 1967-68 |
Arthur J. Jurado 1968-70
Russell G Deupree 1970-71 Daniel F. Smith 1971-72 Mario E. Bolanos 1972-73 Ronald L. Russow 1973-74 Keneth W. Phillips 1974-75 Daniel F. Smith 1975-76 Francis H. Kingston 1976-77 James L. Burns 1977-78 Harold S.Poole 1978-79 Thomas C. Wallis 1979-80 William T. Minney 1980-81 Michael D. Johnson 1981-82 C. T. Christiansen 1982-83 Edward E. Hackbrarth. Jr 1983-84 Richard J. Krings, 1984-85 |
Mark Altmar 1999-2001
F. Dale Bolls 2001-2002 Donald Lasch 2002-2003 Dominick Costanzo 2003-2004 Frank L. Castner 2004-2007 Mark J. Lanca 2007-2009 Jack Sauter 2009-2011 Will Irwin 2011-2012, 2014-16 Robert Cienkus 2012 - 2014 Richard Wolff 2016-2018 Matt Riley 2018- |