Knights of Columbus in Guatemala

As a thirty-plus year member of the Knights of Columbus, I wanted to try to make contact with the Antigua Council on this trip. The Supreme Council was able to give me the name and address of the Financial Secretary, all I had to do was find him.

Despite the fact that his business/home on 2a Avienda Sur did not have a street number posted, I managed to track him down. His name is Gabriel Quiñonez and, in addition to being the Financial Secretary, he's also the District Deputy. Now, Guatemala only has two Knights of Columbus Councils, as far as I know, and the other one is in Quetzaltenango 173 km (108 miles) from Antigua. That takes about three to four hours, due to the mountainous terrain.

Gabriel was delighted to meet a fellow Knights of Columbus member, even more so when he learned that we were planning on being in Antigua for an extended period. He immediately informed me that he wanted to introduce me to their council chaplain, who evidently is very committed to the success of the council. The chaplain, by the way, is a bishop. How about that for support from the clergy?

We've already been invited to our first Knights of Columbus function, a Blue Mass (for the local bomberos or firemen) next Saturday at the church in San Felipe de Jesus. I'm hoping that by making these contacts, that we will have the opportunity to meet and get to know more local resident who aren't gringos, like us. From Gabriel's reaction, I'm sure that will happen.