KCs award tuition scholarships to members’ children

To help members better afford Catholic elementary and high school tuition for their children, the Louisiana State Council of the Knights of Columbus has started a “Catholic School Supplemental Tuition Lottery Program.”

The lottery offers tuition assistance to state Knights of Columbus members who have children enrolled in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade at a Catholic school in Louisiana. A total of 16 students annually will receive $500 each, said Delmas Forbes, Knights of Columbus youth activities chairman.

  Checks are made directly to the schools toward tuition. Several have been in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Forbes said all Louisiana Catholic school superintendents have been sent letters concerning the program.

“We sought to give as much financial assistance as we could,” Forbes said.

Forbes and the Knights of Columbus consider Catholic education as being important in a child’s life.

“We think it’s very important,” he said. “Personally, I think kids who have Catholic education are more prepared for college. That’s one reason, I think we got involved in the program.”

The Knights of Columbus is a Catholic fraternal organization that helps causes in Louisiana such as Special Olympics, mentally challenged children and disaster relief. Each council, individually, is very involved in helping its respective church parish, Forbes said. Statewide, there are more than 30,000 Knights of Columbus members.

Eligible Knights must fill out the Louisiana Catholic Schools Supplemental Tuition Lottery form (downloaded from http://www.louisianakc.org/programs/youth/tuitionlottery.pdf) and submit it to Delmas Forbes, 1533 Cooper St., Denham Springs, LA 70726. Call Forbes at (225) 665-2915.