FOURTH DEGREE COLOR CORPS MEMBER
PART FOUR - FOURTH DEGREE
Hello,
I am here representing the Fourth Degree Color Corps of the Knights of Columbus. The Knights of Columbus was founded 119 years ago in 1882 in New Haven Connecticut, but the fourth Degree of our order was not established until 18 years later in the year 1900. The fourth degree is built on the principle of patriotism - love for and devotion to our country. The Fourth Degree Knights focus the majority of our activities on this principle of patriotism. There are about 2,500 members of the Fourth Degree located here in Maryland. We are organized into individual assemblies, with the one that I belong being Archbishop John Carroll Assembly, serving Hartford and northern Baltimore counties. Each Assembly has its own Color Corps of which I am a member. I am certain that you have seen the Color Corps members at church functions or at various activities in the community.
We attend various church functions when requested including the installation of a new pastor, confirmation ceremonies, visit of the Archbishop to the parish, dedication of new parish facilities, laying of a cornerstone, or other appropriate occasions. When one of our members dies, we provide an Honor Guard to stand at the head of casket during viewing.
We are also very active in community projects such as Memorial Day or 4th of July parades or celebrations and other patriotic events. We encourage and promote the displaying of the American flag, especially on national holidays like Memorial Day, Independence Day, Flag Day and Veteran's Day. We participate in the annual Columbus Day parade in downtown Baltimore to honor our patron Christopher Columbus. We also encourage the recitation of the "Pledge of Allegiance" whenever appropriate.
You may be interested in the distinctive dress that a member of the Color Corps wears. Every member wears a tuxedo with white gloves. He wears a service baldric and a ceremonial sword. You will notice that the baldric is red, white and blue, the colors of the flag of our country. In Canada, the baldric would be red and white because the Canadian flag is white with a red maple leaf. The sword that I wear is emblematic of the weapon of the Crusading Knights of old engaged in defense of the church. We also wear a cape and a black chapeau with a colored plume as I am wearing today. If you have seen the Color Corps before, you have noticed that the capes and plumes on the chapeaux are of different colors. These colors are to distinguish the various ranks of the Color Corps members. A regular Color Corps member wears a red cape with a white plume; the Color Corps Commander wears a purple cape and a purple plume; the District Marshal wears a green cape and green plume; the District Master wears a gold cape and gold plume; and the Vice Supreme Master wears a blue cape and blue plume. The highest elected officer of an assembly, the Faithful Navigator, and Past Faithful Navigators wear white capes with white plumes.
As I mentioned earlier, the Fourth Degree celebrated its 100th Anniversary last year. On February 22, 2000nd, our anniversary date, we provided an Honor Guard and laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arlington National Cemetery in honor of all of the Knights of Columbus who gave their lives defending our country. And on April 1st, the Knights of Columbus held a Pilgrimage to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C. The Fourth Degree Color Corps lead the procession into the Basilica with over 1000 Color Corps members present, the largest gathering of the Color Corps in our 100-year history.
Thank you and have a great day!