Operation Wheelchair at Togus V.A. Hospital in Togus, Maine has become a tradition for the Knights of Columbus in Maine. Councils throughout the state send members and families to Togus on Sunday mornings for the 9:00 am service at the hospital’s chapel. They go up into the wards and wheel veterans who wish to attend Sunday mass.
On Sunday June 30
th, six Knights from K of C Council #13861 of Sanford, along with family members, departed Sanford and traveled 88 miles north to the V.A. Hospital in Togus, Maine. The entourage included: St. Thomas Council Grand Knight Terry Sylvanus, his wife Doris, Deputy Grand Knight Rick Southwick, his wife Rebecca, Past District Deputy Ray Sargent and his wife Claire, Greg Semo, his wife Tina, their daughters Taylor and Ciley, John Chandonnet and Charles LaChapelle. Four veterans attended the Sunday service. Among the four veterans was a Pearl Harbor survivor. Chaplain (Fr.) Jacob George was the celebrant at the mass. Father George is a Clinical Staff Chaplain at the hospital. The entourage, along with two of the veterans, gathered for coffee and doughnuts following the service.
The entourage from K of C St. Thomas Council, front row from left to right: Tina Semo, Claire Sargent, Kiley Semo, Taylor Semo, Doris Sylvanus, Rebecca Southwick, John Chandonnet and Charles LaChapelle. Back row from left to right: Ray Sargent, Greg Semo, Father Jacob George, Terry Sylvanus and Rick Southwick.