Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly was named 2025 Honorary Patron by the Saint John XXIII Foundation, which contributes to the pastoral support of Catholics in the armed services, during its Patrons Reception in Charleston, South Carolina, on Oct. 23.
In the award proclamation, the foundation’s board of directors thanked the Knights of Columbus for supporting the mission and ministries of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, for the past 40 years, since the archdiocese was created in 1985.
Notably, through fundraising by the Fourth Degree, the Order has been a strong supporter of Archdiocese for the Military Services’ Co-Sponsored Seminarian Program, which helps fund the education of seminarians preparing to become Catholic chaplains in the U.S. armed forces. The Knights’ scholarship program addresses the shortage of chaplains ministering to the 1.8 million Catholics served by the archdiocese worldwide.
The Knights of Columbus and the military archdiocese have also co-sponsored an annual Warriors to Lourdes pilgrimage for wounded, ill and injured U.S. military personnel since 2013. In addition, for more than 20 years, they have collaborated to distribute more than 700,000 copies of the Order’s Armed with the Faith prayer book to U.S. military personnel at home and abroad.
The Saint John XXIII Foundation was incorporated in 2022 to raise funds for the pastoral support of Catholics in the U.S. armed forces, Catholic patients in Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers, and Catholic United States government personnel serving outside of the United States.
In remarks delivered remotely, Supreme Knight Kelly, who served in the U.S. Navy for 24 years, thanked the Saint John XXIII Foundation for its spiritual support of Catholics in the armed services. “I gratefully accept this award on behalf of the over 2 million members of the Knights who are so committed to charity, unity, fraternity — but also to patriotism,” he said.
“One thing I saw when I was on active duty is the great value that our chaplains bring,” continued Supreme Knight Kelly, who served in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG) as a Navy lawyer, both in active duty and in the Navy Reserve, retiring with the rank of captain.
“I worked very closely with chaplains, being a JAG,” Kelly said. “When I was deployed aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Guam (LPH 9), the flagship of an amphibious ready group, we were very fortunate to have a chaplain. He and I became very good friends, and worked as a tag team. I would send [sailors] to the chaplain when I knew that they needed a sympathetic ear.”
Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, was the principal celebrant of a Mass preceding the Patrons Reception. Concelebrants included Msgr. Anthony Frontiero, vicar general of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA; and priests of the Diocese of Charleston.
The Mass celebrated the feast of St. John of Capistrano, the patron saint of military chaplains, who led the Hungarian army to successfully defend the city of Belgrade from an Ottoman siege in 1456.
“It is only fitting that Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly and the Knights of Columbus be honored with this award,” said Archbishop Broglio, who is president of the Saint John XXIII Foundation. “Historically, the Knights of Columbus have always been present, going back to the First World War and they have continued to be supportive of our military and the archdiocese, including catechesis, vocations programs and so many other ways.”