Knights of Columbus Council 1916 (Renfrew)
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Columbus Club Retail and Residential

Space for Rent

Our tenants enjoy prime retail leasing space, on Renfrew's main thoroughfare; other retail and service-oriented space with ample parking faced on to Plaunt Street. If you are only in need of meeting or entertaining space for an hour or two, or an evening or afternoon, we have that too. 

Retail or Residential Space Vacancy

Three spaces: 43' x 23' (13m x 7m); 24' x 14' (7.4m x 4.3m); and, 22' x 18' (6.8m x 5.5m). All prime office space, or convertible to residential living space.

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We Do Care

Christmas Dinner 2025

Our Hearts are Full

Over a few short days in the approach to Christmas Day 2025, and on the day especially, many a Knight and "Friend to the Council" came together volunteering their energies and care for the benefit of those in our community who probably appreciate more than others the offer of a Christmas Dinner on the very day they are not necessarily able to prepare nor secure one. We served "First Responders" throughout our community, including Police, Firefighters, Emergency Response and Ambulance, Renfrew Victoria Hospital staff, some patients and others. Over 320 meals were delivered and/or served on site, making again this one another success.
The Front Line

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Families and Friends

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Rev Fr. Brennan

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Assembly Line in Operation

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Veggies on Order

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Rev Fr. Coyne 

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Others Care Alongside Us

Results and Resources

Friends, Family and Fans

We served 335 meals in 2025, down marginally from 2024 when we served 360. The net per capita cost of a meal was $7.08 from expenses totaling $2,373.04. Volunteer hours tallied exceeded 308, well up from  the 246 hours in 2024. Donations made in 2025 reached $2,945, up from $1560 in 2024. We wish to express sincere gratitude to the following suppliers, merchants and individuals, for their contributions in many forms, including supplies, support and service: Tracy Hunt; Renfrew Metro; J. Quattrocchi & Co. Ltd.; Costco; Wholesale Club; Scott & Sons Ltd.; Home Hardware; and, some of our administrative leaders, cooks and drivers: Kelly Hunt, Reg Leblanc, Robert Lorbetskie; Paul Ouellette; Cathy Black; Don Goulet; Rev. Fr. Michael Coyne; Dean Black; Peter Poisson; Wayne Remus; and, more to be named, in our next edit, as the after-action report preparation continues.

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Reverend Mervin Paul Jerome Coulas

Reverend Father Mervin Coulas has passed away. Fr. Coulas served as the Chaplain to the Renfrew Council 1916 for many years. His obituary may be found here at the Heubner Funeral Home (Barry's Bay) website. 

Reverend Mervin Coulas Obituary

Fortified by the Sacraments of the Church and surrounded with prayer, Reverend Mervin Paul Jerome Coulas passed away at the Pembroke Regional Hospital on August 6, the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, after 62 years of Priesthood.

Born on June 25, 1938, as the only child of Paul and Laura (Roy) Coulas. Raised and educated in Barry’s Bay, he received his seminary formation and studies at St. Augustine Seminary in Toronto. Father Coulas received Ordination to the Priesthood in his home parish of St. Hedwig in Barry’s Bay on May 29, 1963. In his first years of priesthood, he served as assistant priest in Bancroft, Haliburton, Eganville, Golden Lake, St Hedwig’s, Barry’s Bay, Our Lady of Lourdes, Pembroke,  Deep River, St Francis Xavier, Renfrew, and Most Holy Name of Jesus, Pembroke. He served as pastor and administrator in Our Lady of the Angels Parish, Brudenell, St. Casmir Parish, Round Lake, Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Renfrew and St. Lawrence O’Toole Parish in Barry’s Bay. In addition to his parish ministry, Father Coulas pursued studies in the humanities at Laurentian University in Sudbury and a licentiate in canon law at St. Paul University in Ottawa in 1978. In 1974 he was appointed as Director of Vocations for the Diocese of Pembroke, a role that he carried out until 1999. Father Coulas served for 12 years as a trustee of the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board, spiritual director to the Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse, chaplain to branches of the Knights of Columbus, Catholic Women’s League, Royal Canadian Legion and a member of the Canon Law Society of Canada. He also served as president and board member of the Alumni Association of St. Augustine Seminary. Father Coulas was keenly interested in the history and culture of the Kashub people in Pembroke Diocese.

Rite of Reception will take place at St. Hedwig Church, Barry’s Bay on Monday, August 11 at 3:00p.m., followed by public visitation until 7:00p.m. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St Hedwig Church on Tuesday, August 12 at 1:00p.m. with the Most Reverend Michael Brehl, C.Ss.R. as the principal celebrant. Interment to follow in the family plot at St. Hedwig Cemetery. Arrangements in the care of the Heubner Funeral Home, Barry’s Bay.
Knights in Support

A New School Year Upon Us

Late each summer, as schools prepare to welcome youngsters back, the Knights of Council 1916 lend a hand, especially in support of Fun Fairs and Orientation Days. Hot Dogs, Hamburgers and Cold Drinks are on offer, courtesy of our first-rate teaching staff. Thank you to our Knights for volunteering each year. Pictured (left) Roy Leitch and Peter Poisson, along with Cathy Black on "distribution;" and, (right) Steve Mears and Paul Ouellette on "manufaturing." Big "thank you" to Ben Oakes (SunLife) for the loan of his outstanding grill!
Ontario Catholic School Graduate Expectations (OCSGEs)

Sophia Holmes - 2025 Bursary Awardee

The Ontario Catholic School Graduate Expectations (OCSGEs) were developed to provide a framework to represent the distinctiveness and purpose of Catholic education in Ontario. The OCSGEs were derived from the Love of Learning, a report created by the Ontario Royal Commission on Education, which recommended the development of a set of “graduate outcomes” that should be “subject and skill orientated”. The Institute for Catholic Education worked collaboratively with the Ontario Catholic education community to craft a distinctive set of graduate guidelines, which led to the release of the OCSGEs in the 1998-1999 school year. Since the relationship between learning and believing is fundamental in Catholic schools, the decision was made that the Catholic Graduate Expectations must focus not only on knowledge and skills, but also on values and actions.

In 2025 members of the Renfrew Council of the Knights of Columbus (1916) deliberately chose to evaluate their Council's bursary-eligible awardees in part by considering the extent to which these young Canadians ascribed to and opted to follow the Ontario Catholic School Graduate Expectations (OCSGEs). That element of the OCSGEs that helps young Canadians develop and nurture values society needs is the element the Knights of Columbus are focused on, along with academic and athletic achievements. Each year the Council chooses from amongst eligible applicants at the Renfrew Collegiate Institute (RCI) and St. Joseph's High School (SJHS) up to three (3) awardees. Eligible awardees are not always drawn from local secondary school populations. In 2025, a home-schooled teenager proved more than eligible - Sophia Holmes was identified as amongst the top-rated candidates for the $500 bursary. Congratulations Sophia, and best wishes for a rewarding career and life, in your chosen vocation. We are very proud or you, and will always be here for you and the causes you champion.