Contact Our Leadership Team for More Information at Knights@KOC14563.org
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Council 14563 Monroe Ohio
Knights of Columbus Council 14563 was formed in 2009, making it about 17 years old as of 2026
Donations to the Knights of Columbus are tax deductible, since they will be donated to the Parish.
The Knights of Columbus is a fraternal benefit society, but does offer 501c3 affiliated charities for donation purposes.
Upcoming Events
See Calendar Below for Details
Pumpkin Carving and Lunch October 25, 2026
Following 10:30am Mass
Our Lady of Sorrows Parish Hall
Please RSVP the number of children attending so that we know we have enough pumpkins. We will have cutting and drawing tools.
Hotdogs, snacks, and beverages will be provided. See Information board in Church for details. Signup in Church or email the Knights by October 24.
Congratulations - We are a 2025 Star Council
Congratulations - We are a 2025 Star Council
The Knights of Columbus Star Council Award is the national organization’s highest honor for local councils. It recognizes overall excellence in membership growth, promotion of fraternal insurance benefits, and community service programming. To earn this distinction, a council must achieve three key sub-awards:
Father McGivney Award: Meeting or exceeding net membership growth quotas (6% or 5-15 new members).
Founders' Award: Promoting insurance and financial benefits through member financial reviews or benefit events.
Columbian Award: Running and reporting 16 major charitable and service program credits.
Councils must also submit required annual reports and maintain safe environment compliance
October 18, Mission Sunday Celebration of our Members
October 18, Mission Sunday Celebration of our Members
Charlie Gneurs presents Rev Ben Mersch and our Grand Knight Bill Schretter with the 2025 Star Council Award. This award is a celebration of all the charitable works that our Council assists with in the parish, community, and even our nation.
As Catholic Men, we are called to Know God, Love God, and Serve God and Others. We are honored to do good works here at Our Lady of Sorrows and encourage all men, who are not members, to join us in our mission. We have never had a member who regretted his fraternal service in the Knights.
Become a Member of the Knights of Columbus
Become a Member of the Knights of Columbus
Ohio Father McGivney Shrine
Catholic Men Join the Knights Families
Planned Activities and Programs in 2026-2027
The Services We Provide to our Local Church and Community
Our Lady of Sorrows
Annual Fish Fry
Into The Breach
Fraternal Activities for Faith and Evangelization
Bible Study
Bible Study
The Knights of Columbus Cor program is a faith-formation and brotherhood initiative centered on prayer, formation, and fraternity. Derived from the Latin word for "heart" (which is also the root for "courage"), its goal is to help Catholic men build Christ-centered friendships and deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ
The Welcome Men's Group and Retreats
The Welcome Men's Group and Retreats
Learn more at the website - www.welcomemenolop.com
Through the Welcome Men's Group, men of our parish and community can have even greater fraternal and moral support with the challenges of life- deepening their relationships with both Christ and fellow Catholic and Christian Men.
Members of the group are over the age of 18
Refund Support Vocations Program
Refund Support Vocations Program
Keep the faith alive by supporting our seminarians and men and women religious postulants and novices.
As the strong right arm of the church, Knights of Columbus are committed to providing moral, financial and spiritual support to our future priests and religious at all stages of their formation.
Our charity and activities provide financial assistance to those seeking to be ordained in the Catholic Church.
Fraternal Activities Supporting Families and Communities
What is the ASAP program? ASAP (Aid and Support After Pregnancy) is a featured program to support pregnant women, mothers, and their children, both born and unborn, by serving pregnancy resource centers and maternity homes.
Coats for Kids Program
Surpasses One Million Coats
Since Knights of Columbus Coats for Kids® launched in 2009, Knights have distributed coats in 49 U.S. states and all 10 Canadian provinces — including on U.S. military bases and Native American and First Nation reservations in the U.S. and Canada. Knights of Columbus councils have distributed over 100,000 coats to children in need each year since 2017 and are on pace to distribute 200,000 coats in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and now 2026.
Financial and Religious Discrimination is Early US History*
The Knights of Columbus offered insurance to Catholic Immigrants when other insurance companies and employers would not. Rev Michael McGivney saw Catholic families experience great suffering because of the lack of insurance. So, in 1886, he founded a Fraternal Benefit Society similar to organizations that had existed in Church history- but now focused on the financial welfare of the family. The Knights of Columbus has served Catholic families ever since, with its profits benefiting Catholic communities and charities around the world. Learm more at the national website
Pictures of Our Activities and Events
2026 2010 to 2025
About Our Lady of Sorrows, Monroe Ohio
Our Lady of Sorrows in Monroe, Ohio, has a history spanning over 140 years:
1869: The Catholic community in Monroe was first established by Father Smith, a priest coming from Holy Trinity Church in Middletown, Ohio (which served as the "Mother Church").
1881: The mission acquired a frame building from a local Protestant group.
1883: The congregation was formally organized as a mission parish of St. Francis in Lebanon, Ohio, under the original devotional title "Seven Dolours".
1886: The old frame structure was demolished. In its place, a new Roman-style brick church with stained-glass windows was erected on South Street (now known as Lebanon Street). Father Brinkmeyer was assigned as the first pastor of Monroe.
1939: A fire heavily damaged the interior of the church building, though the exterior brick walls remained structurally sound.
1942: The church was rebuilt, reopened in February 1942, and expanded with the addition of a recreation hall. Over time, the name transitioned from the Church of Our Lady of Seven Dolors to Our Lady of Sorrows.
1998: Mother Teresa Catholic Elementary School (MTCES) opened its initial classes in the basement of Our Lady of Sorrows Church before moving to its permanent Liberty Township campus in 2002.
Present Day: Located at 330 Lebanon Street, the parish continues to serve the local Catholic community and is clustered with neighboring parishes as part of the Our Lady of Peace Family of Parishes in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.
"No Irish Need Apply”: Catholic Discrimination In the United States*
"No Irish Need Apply”: Catholic Discrimination In the United States*
Between 1850 and 1900, Irish and German Catholics faced widespread religious and ethnic discrimination in America. Immigrants encountered employment restrictions, while Catholics faced political exclusion, social prejudice, and hostility toward their religious institutions.¹ ² The Know-Nothing movement openly opposed Catholic participation in government, questioning whether Catholics could be loyal American citizens.² Working-class Catholic families also struggled to obtain affordable life insurance and financial protection. Recognizing these hardships, Father Michael J. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882 to provide mutual aid, protect widows and orphans, and strengthen Catholic fraternity.³ The Knights emerged as a practical response to discrimination, economic insecurity, and the need to affirm Catholic dignity and American citizenship. Citations:
Rebecca A. Fried, “No Irish Need Deny,” Journal of Social History (2016).
Library of Congress, “Religious Conflict and Discrimination.”
Knights of Columbus, “Insurance: A Legacy of Protection.”
*Article complied and written by Bill Schretter. Contact Bill Schretter to learn more about financial and religious discrimination in the USA 1850 to 1900
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