Support Your Brother Knights

No council should leave a Brother Knight behind. You are encouraged to create a “phone tree” to make personal contact with every man in your council to ensure that members are safe, healthy and cared for. Consider enacting a “Buddy System” in which two Brother Knights check in with each other daily, fostering socialization and gauging health concerns for themselves and their families. As members of your council face challenges, ensure they have the support and resources they need.

Action Steps

1. Assemble a Coronavirus Committee to plan your efforts, such as:

 • Assign as many phone tree callers as possible to check on Brother Knights.
 • Identify potential buddies.
 • Assign a member to manage phone and email list updates.
 • Assign members to receive incoming phone calls.
 • Assign a member to find contacts for local support organizations.
 • Develop a plan to contact widows of deceased brothers.

2. Determine support. Consider what assistance your council can realistically provide in the immediate future, and what services might be available through further planning. Some suggestions include:

 • Start a “Buddy System” – Assign willing members as buddies, to make daily contact with “at risk” members and their families.
 • Offer to drive to the grocery store or pharmacy to pick up food, medicine, etc.
 • Coordinate online ordering.

3. Develop a list of local support organizations and hotlines. Try to anticipate the needs of members and identify local resources. Below are some contacts that you may want to collect:

 • Local Food Pantries
 • State and Local Coronavirus Hotlines
 • Hospitals
 • Urgent Care Centers

4. Assemble your council contact information.

 • Use the Knights of Columbus Email Tool:
The Member Management and Member Billing applications, available to Grand Knights and Financial Secretaries through Officers Online, have a tool that will send messages to all members with an email address on file. If you are not familiar with the tool, watch this 3-minute video.

 • Use the Knights of Columbus Data Extract Tool:
The Member Management and Member Billing applications also have a Data Extract Tool that creates an Excel document with all members phone numbers on file. For those Financial Secretaries that have entered spouse information, include each member’s wife’s first name in the extract. If you are not familiar with the tool, watch this 3-minute video.

5. Regularly communicate to members.

 • Your Brother Knights will be counting on you to provide them with updates, offer support and identify opportunities to serve your parish and community. Touch base frequently to ensure that all members are safe and healthy.
 • Hold council meetings and events via tele-conference or other remote means.

6. Report your activities with the Leave No Neighbor Behind Survey at www.kofc.org/neighbor.

Additional Resources

1. Appendix A: Support Your Brother Knights - Sample Email Script (Found at the back of this Downloadable Guidebook)
2. Appendix B: Support Your Brother Knights - Sample Texting Script (Found at the back of this Downloadable Guidebook)
3. Appendix C: Support Your Brother Knights - Sample Phone Call Scripts (Found at the back of this Downloadable Guidebook)
1. Wrong Number
2. Leaving a Message
3. Conversation