>> I was given the last two issues of the Knights of Columbus magazine, Columbia, by a friend of mine. And it is an inspiring publication in many ways. The editor, Alton J. Pelowski, does a commendable job in making the monthly attractive and easy to read. Perusing it, I was impressed with the many accounts of charitable works of the Knights, especially in aiding the flood victims in last August’s deluge in Louisiana’s Baton Rouge area, which, for this part of the state, wreaked more devastation than Hurricane Katrina of 2005. The storm lasted five days, inundating some areas with thirty inches of rain; that was three times what Baton Rouge endured from Katrina. In that earlier catastrophe, the Knights contributed ten million dollars for reconstruction efforts. I was also much impressed with the story of Army Captain Luis Avila, Honduran-born, who lost a leg in Afghanistan doing his fifth tour of duty. It’s a must read. God bless the Knights who helped actor Gary Sinese and the Sinese Foundation build him a custom-made home for his family of five now living in Maryland where he is getting therapy. It is a miracle that this heroic veteran, whose wife prayed countless Rosaries for him, survived. He was pronounced dead twice after an IED killed three of the five soldiers in his jeep. He had suffered two heart attacks after the explosion tore his leg off (February issue, 2017).