CATONSVILLE – Smiles and laughter filled St. Agnes School’s gymnasium as children in grades pre-K-8 arrived in waves to receive free winter coats and greet Archbishop William E. Lori the morning of Dec. 9.
“He just loves this,” Anthony N. Salvemini, state deputy for the Maryland State Council, Knights of Columbus, said, as he watched Archbishop Lori help students with their coats. “Every year he comes out and participates.”
Since 2009, the Knights of Columbus has provided more than a million new winter coats to children throughout the United States and Canada through its Coats for Kids project. The Maryland State Council distributed 175 coats Dec. 9 to students at St. Agnes, with other coats designated for students at The Loyola School in Baltimore, Head Start and Catholic Charities locations throughout the area. In all, the Knights distributed 720 coats locally.
At St. Agnes, Archbishop Lori sprinkled holy water on the coats before they were distributed.
“With gratitude for God’s boundless love and for this gift of warmth, protect those who wear them,” he prayed. “Shield them from the cold. May they know they’re not alone but surrounded by a community that cares.”
Lines quickly formed at the tables as Knights of Columbus members helped students try on coats. Arms were raised, sleeves tugged and zippers zipped until the perfect fit was found.
“It’s fine,” said Caleb Tamiru, a 12-year-old sixth grader as he admired his new green coat. “It’s good.”
Alaya Reed, 13, was with her prayer partner, preschooler Nori, 3.
“We help them during church and make sure they are quiet,” the eighth grader said, as her young charge hugged a coat the two found for her.
The Archdiocese of Baltimore annually designates which school will be the recipient of the coat drive, Salvemini said. Archbishop Lori is the supreme chaplain for the Knights, whose mission is to empower Catholic men to live their faith at home, in their parish, at work and in their community. There are 26,000 members in Maryland, Salvemini said. Through fundraisers, the state council purchased the coats for $6,500 from the Knights’ headquarters.
Prior to the coat giveaway, the archbishop celebrated a Mass with the students as the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was observed as a holy day of obligation.
“Many of them are not Catholic,” Father Isaac Makovo, pastor of St. Agnes, said of the students. “We have been explaining the hierarchy. To see the archbishop preside over the Mass, they were overjoyed.”
For his part, Archbishop Lori couldn’t stop smiling as he greeted students and posed for photos with them.
“Coats for Kids is a really wonderful program of the Knights of Columbus,” Archbishop Lori said, afterward. “I am happy every year to be a part of it and to provide nice warm coats to so many deserving young people.”
Email Katie V. Jones at kjones@CatholicReview.org.
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