WARWICK — St. Gregory the Great Knights of Columbus Council 128211 in Warwick, along with the generosity of parishioners, has raised funds to support the Warriors to Lourdes Military Pilgrimage this May. The Knights of Columbus sponsored a fundraiser during Veterans Day Weekend 2018 to support this pilgrimage. The pilgrimage is co-sponsored each year by the Knights of Columbus Charities in New Haven, Connecticut and the Archdiocese for Military Services USA in Washington, D.C.
The purpose of the pilgrimage is to send U.S. Military veterans, many of whom are Wounded Warriors, to participate in a world-wide military pilgrimage at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, one of the most famous religious venues in the world. The intention is to provide an opportunity for the physical and spiritual healing of those who served, with emphasis on the post 9/11 era.
Their goal was to collect funds to send at least one Wounded Warrior to Lourdes this year. The cost for one individual is approximately $2,600. To that end, the St. Gregory Knights of Columbus offered to match the first $1,500 collected over Veterans Day Weekend. The fundraiser was a huge success with a collection from the four Masses totaling $2,700. Matched with the $1,500, a total of $4,200 has been collected for this project.
The St. Gregory Knights of Columbus believes this is the first effort by a Knights of Columbus entity in Rhode Island to organize a formal fundraiser to support the Warriors to Lourdes Pilgrimage. With this demonstrated success in hand, the Knights of Columbus encourage other councils and assemblies to consider supporting this outstanding event in the near future.
