Young Blood in the Order
- Fri, May 7, 2021 8:58 AM
His proud association with the Knights of Columbus and its values serves as a convincing rebuttal to anyone who might be tempted to write off the Catholic fraternal organization as some sort of old-timers' club. The number of younger men who have joined the council over the past year at his invitation testifies to the fact that they too see a place for themselves in the organization.
"I know for a fact it's helped strengthen my faith," Hammock said of his involvement with the Knights, and he has found it "unbelievably rewarding" to help fellow Knights deepen their own faith.
Tom Davis, president of the San Diego Diocese Chapter of the Knights of Columbus and a two-time past grand knight of the council, recognized Hammock's potential and asked him last year to consider becoming the next grand knight. "I told him that the council is his, it's not 'owned' by the old guard, and to plan programs and take this council where it needs to be today," Davis said.
While Knights in general tend to skew older, with many members already married men with families, Davis said almost all of those who have joined Council 1349 during the last year have been young adults.
"Just because many of us are Gen X or older doesn't mean the Knights is only for those generations," said Davis, who credits Hammock with "helping turn (around) that idea that we're this old group that is irrelevant to a younger demographic. We are very relevant."
You may read the entire story from Catholic News Service at - Detroit Catholic