RE: Knights of Columbus
Dear Editor:
When I joined the Knights of Columbus 40 years ago, my first assignment was to solicit donations for the handicapped. At that time, I thought it was degrading to “beg”, but I told myself, “Since it’s for a good cause, I’ll give it a shot.” I felt uneasy when I arrived for my first posting in front of the Grand Union grocery store on Sample Road. I got there early to relieve a fellow Knight and get the hang of things, which turned out not to be complicated.
An hour or so into my shift, a group of four 12-year-olds arrived in their “Saturday work clothes”, free from the pressures of the school day and heading towards the stores hooting and howling to give the shopkeepers a hard time. I thought briefly of going inside the Grand Union to let these young “problems” pass, but I thought, “No, I’m a Knights of Columbus member and should act like a Knight.” Armed with a handful of Tootsie Rolls as my lance, I charged! I thrust the Tootsie Rolls into the youngsters’ hands saying, “Here, have a Tootsie Roll, boys!” They stopped in their tracks!
The leader of the gang demanded to know, “What’s this for?” I explained that people who donated money to help local children with disabilities were rewarded with a Tootsie Roll. The leader thought for a moment, then said “I got some money.” He rummaged in his pockets and came up with eight cents – it was all they had between them. Off they went, and I knew, because of their energy and charity, they had a bright future ahead of them. This encounter made my day.
Over the years, I’ve seen young parents tell their children to deposit some coins, and other handicapped people add their dollar or two to help their own cause. Sometimes, a person gives $10 or $20, or a generous soul may donate $50. Wow! All these donations are appreciated, but none of them has given me as much encouragement as that first gang of boys with their eight cents.
I have been collecting at the Venetian Isles Publix for many years, attend all the Sunday masses at St. Ambrose and hope to see all you good neighborly people again this March [March 5-16 when the Knights of Columbus will be collecting again].
Last year, the Knights of Columbus raised over $9,000 locally for those in need. It is our hope that we can meet or exceed this record, as it is always for the good of others that we persist.
The Knights donate to such charities as Special Olympics, Equine Assisted Therapies, the Dynamos of Pompano and more.
Volunteers are needed and contributions are greatly appreciated. Call 954-303-9736.
Joe Cauley
Deerfield Beach
RE: Open Carry letter (Jan. 28)
Dear Editor:
With all due respect to the Senator [Maria Sachs] from Delray, I strongly disagree with her comments [that we should not allow open carry for guns]. Florida does not have a gun problem, it has a people problem. No one, that I am aware of, has ever suggested that a mentally unstable person should own a gun. If we apply her logic to the automobile, then we would ban cars. What some lawmakers want to do is pass laws that only affect law abiding, sane people.
Gary Lawrence
Morganton, GA
RE: Traffic light timing
Dear Editor:
What does a person need to do to get the new traffic light (which is one year old) at NW 2 Avenue, in front of Bazaar Foods, to be coordinated with the other traffic lights on Hillsboro Boulevard? It’s on a tripper and jams up traffic going in both directions. If this light was on the same [timed] pattern as the other lights, people going in and out of the grocery would have no problem and traffic would flow more smoothly. All the other cross streets in Deerfield have to wait three minutes to cross.
J. Huffman
Deerfield Beach
