Council #4125
Tomah
Tomah, WI US
(tomahkofc.org)
COUNCIL RECOGNITION
KNIGHTS OF THE MONTH
January 2026
Lamont Dechant
Brother Lamont graduated from Tomah High School, WTC Tech School, and Army Mechanical School.
Lamont served in the Army for 13 years and was on active duty for 1.5 years. Lamont has been married to wife, Frances, for 58 years and they have five children, 11 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren. Lamont worked construction after high school, then ten years for the U.S. Government and spent over 50 years farming. Lamont has been a Knights of Columbus member for over 50 years and has held the office of Deputy Grand Knight. He is a lifelong member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, past member of the Parish Council, and member of the Cemetery Board. Lamont has worked at the cemetery for 18 years, helped with the Tootsie Roll Drive, and works at the Cranfest. Brother Lamont has been a member of Catholic Order of Foresters for over 60 years and served on the Board. He is a member of American Legion Post 201 and Past Commander. Lamont is on the Legion firing squad for military funerals. He was on the Town of Adrian Board for 12 years
and a member of the I Dividers Snowmobile Club. Congratulations, Brother Lamont, and thank you for all the great work you do for the Knights of Columbus, our Church, and our community.
December 2025
Richard Honish
Brother Richard was born into a large family of 10 children right here in Tomah. He graduated from Tomah High School and has been married to Kelly, described in his words as "the most amazing woman ever" for 30 plus years. The Honish's have five children and five grandchildren, with another one on the way. Brother Richard has been employed in Maintenance Operations for Ocean Spray for the past 30 years. Brother Richard has been a Knights of Columbus member for 37 years and an active parishioner of Queen of the Apostles Parish. He is a Eucharistic minister and usher. Richard assists with the cleaning of the church on a yearly rotation and assists with decorating. Brother Richard is a Focus facilitator and Pre-Cana instructor. He participates in leading the rosary for special occasions as well as filling in on weekends and is a willing volunteer for the tootsie roll drive, roadside clean-up, and bingo and spaghetti suppers. Thank you, Brother Richard, for all you do for the Knights of Columbus and our parish.
December 2025
Larry Dechant
Brother Larry has been a member of Council 4125 for 69 years and has held many different offices within the Knights. He was one of the first Grand Knights of Council 4125. He volunteers many hours supporting Knights of Columbus events. Brother Larry helped with refurbishing Saint Michael's Catholic Cemetery on County Highway A, the Tootsie Roll Drive, K.C. bingo and spaghetti suppers, pulling a shift at the K.C. food trailer at the Warrens Cranfest, stuffing KC newsletters into envelopes, picking up trash along Highway 12 as part of the KC's Adopt-a-Highway program, assisting at Second and Third Degree ceremonies, working the kitchen at our recent Drive-Thru Chicken Q, assembling a playground swing and slide set for a family with Foster Children, and leading the Rosary at St. Mary's Church. The Dechant family has been active members of our parish and the Knights of Columbus. In all these endeavors, we find Lady Shirley Dechant taking a vital and active part. Thank you, Brother Larry Dechant, for everything you do for the Knights of Columbus, the Queen of the Apostles Parish, and the Tomah community.
November 2025
Dick Baumgarten
Brother Dick has been a Knight for almost 58 years! He has also been the Council’s Treasurer 52 years, keeping track of the books, paying the bills, funding the donations by our Council, and making sure everything is “on the up and up” to keep us out of trouble. He says he liked being the Treasurer because he figures that way, no one will ask him to volunteer for anything else... We do greatly appreciate all the time, effort, and care you dedicate to the Council and the community. Thank you, Brother Dick for everything you have done and continue to do for the community and the Knights.
September 2025
John Timm
Brother John is an active member of Queen of the Apostles Parish and is very active within Council 4125. He compiles and produces the monthly Council newsletter, the Knight Light, keeping all members fully informed of past and future goings on in the Council. John is the originator and creator of our award-winning Council History Book and diligently records all our council activities for preservation. Brother John is also an active member of the 4th Degree Assembly 1902 and frequently assists with Council events such as Bingo and Spaghetti Dinners, Tootsie Roll Drive, Adopt-a-Highway, and Cranfest Food Booth. John has also regularly volunteered to serve veterans and the VA. As an avid and skilled woodworker, he made a beautiful display for the hall to commemorate our deceased brother Knights. Thank you, Brother John, for all you do for the Knights of Columbus, Queen of the Apostles Parish, and our community.
August 2025
Dennis Koranda
Brother Dennis is currently the Worthy Recorder for Council 4125, past District 23 Deputy, and past Grand Knight. A member of the Fourth Degree, Sir Knight Dennis has served as Faithful Captain, Faithful Comptroller, Faithful Navigator, and on the Honor Guard. Brother Denny is very active in many council activities and gets involved in whatever he is able. This includes Cranfest, the Tootsie Roll Drive, Knowledge Contest, Free Throw Contest, and Bingo. At Queen of Apostles Parish, he serves as the KC representative to the Parish Council and is a lector and Eucharistic Minister. Brother Dennis has been a member of the Lions Club for over 48 years, holding many club offices including three terms as president, as well as many district and state positions such as District Governor and the President of the Wisconsin Lions Foundation. Brother Dennis represented the local and State Councils at the 140th Supreme convention in Nashville, TN, where he and his wife, Lady Jan, had a wonderful experience.
July 2025
Doug Semrau
Doug has been a Knight for many, many years and is very active. Most notably, he is the bingo chairman and manages the popular first Saturday bingo at the KC hall every month. This provides a regular source of funds for the council that can then be put towards worthy and charitable causes. Doug is also an active member of Queen of the Apostles Parish and volunteers as a money counter, helping to process the weekend collections each Monday. These are just a few examples of Brother Doug’s contributions. Congratulations, Brother Doug, and thank you for all you do for our Council, your parish, and the community.
June 2025
Larry Scheckel
Sir Knight Larry has been a Knight for 50 years and is also a 4th degree member of Assembly 1902. A past Grand Knight and Faithful Navigator, Brother Larry remains very involved and participates in most Council and Assembly activities. Most notably, Brother Larry writes a regular column for the Tomah Journal called the Knightly News that informs the community about all the great things the Knights are doing. At Queen of the Apostles Parish, Larry is a lector, usher, and Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion. A retired science teacher, he writes another regular newspaper column that answers a diverse array of questions from readers. He has also written several books and educates and entertains students with presentations as “Mr. Science.”
FAMILIES OF THE MONTH
January 2026
Greg and Colleen Grovesteen Family
Brother Greg and Colleen both worked for the Tomah School District, Greg as a
teacher and coach (and now retired) and Colleen in the district office. They have
three grown children, Kaylee, Logan, and Carson. Kaylee is also a teacher for the
Tomah School District. The entire Grovesteen family is very involved at Queen of
the Apostles Parish as ushers and, in previous years, with the children’s liturgy at
Sunday Mass. In addition, they are also very instrumental in the planning and
organizing of Streetfest, one of the parish’s biggest events each year. Thank you to
the Grovesteen family for your service and example.
December 2025
Bob and Barb Zupancich
All five of Bob and Barb's children attended St. Mary's School, and Bob and Barb remain active at the Queen of Apostles Parish and have been for many years. Bob and Barb give back to the parish in many ways, but one to mention is the pizza fund raiser. They have been coordinating the annual pizza fund raiser for the parish since 2008, making around 1800 pizzas from scratch which raises around $10,000 dollars for the school activity fund. Barb was the music teacher at Queen of Apostles School for 30 years and continues as the director of parish music today. Thank you for all you do for the parish, and the Knights of Columbus.
November 2025
Deacon Bob and Lorraine Riedl
Deacon Bob is a permanent deacon assigned to Queen of the Apostles Parish since his ordination almost 13 years ago. In addition to his duties at Masses, he is very involved in the community as well. He helps with the food pantry, is active in the Monroe County Right to Life, and serves as parish coordinator for the Family Promise program. When donations were needed for Afghan refugees at Fort McCoy, he coordinated the collection and delivery of a huge number of items. Lorraine is also very active and is a past president of the Diocese of La Crosse Council of Catholic Women. She is also a member of the choir and a cantor. Deacon Bob recently retired from his “civilian” job, and he and Lorraine now travel frequently, camping in state and national parks across the country, and in other interesting places. Congratulations to Deacon Bob and thank you for your strong support of the community, the Knights of Columbus, and the Queen of the Apostles Parish.
October 2025
Tom and Mary Jean Wolf
Brother Tom is a very active member of the Knights of Columbus Council 4125. Brother Tom served on the St Mary's Parish council for five years, the Deanery Pastoral council for the Diocese of LaCrosse, the Fourth diocese of La Crosse Synod, and has served on the rural life committee for the diocese of La Crosse. Brother Tom was a charter member of the Wilton-Kendall council 10158 and Grand Knight for a year and family life chair for five years. Brother Tom is always one of the first to sign up to help with events like Bingo and Spaghetti dinners, the food trailer at Cranfest the 4th of July Parade, and Holiday Parade. Lady Mary Jean, like Tom, is a product of the one room country school. She attended St. Catherine's High School in Racine for 3.5 years and graduated from Tomah high School. Mary Jean attended WWTC for training as a Certified Nursing Assistant and worked at the Tomah Care Center. She was religious education coordinator at St John's in Wilton and taught religious education for 12 years. Our congratulation to Tom and Mary Jean Wolf and thank you for being such strong supporters of the Knights of Columbus and Queen of Apostles Parish.
September 2025
Richard and Kelly Honish
Brother Richard and Lady Kelly are active members of our Queen of the Apostles parish. Both are ushers and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (EMHC), they do church cleaning, assist in decorating, are Pre-Cana instructors, and are Focus facilitators. Kelly additionally is a Reader and sells script. Brother Richard has been a member of the, Council 4125 for 30 years. Both Richard and Kelly help our Council with the monthly bingo fund raiser and Spaghetti Dinners, Cranfest, Tractor Pulls, St. Patrick’s Carnival, pizza assembler, and tootsie roll drives. Lady Kelly has volunteered with the Catholic Charities Warming Shelter for the past 10 years. Richard is a member of the Adopt-a-Highway clean-up crew. The Honish’s were born and raised in Tomah, married in 1994, and have five children and four grandchildren. Brother Richard worked for 29 years at Ocean Spray and Lady Kelly has been with the VA for 36 years and retired on Dec 30th, 2023. Thank you, Richard and Kelly Honish, for all your hard work and the many hours you have given our Queen of the Apostles parish, Council 4125, and the Tomah community.
August 2025
Greg and Julie Zingler Family
The Zingler's have five children, Braden, Carley, Bennett, Mya, and Max. Greg owns and operates "Zingler Sign and Design" and no doubt you have seen several of his products in the area, including the pro-life sign by the Tomah Airport. Julie is a speech and language pathologist for the Tomah school district. They are very active in the community, especially the Village of Warrens and at St. Andrew Church. Greg taught confirmation class for Queen of the Apostles for several years and his daughter Carley was a catechist. Mia and Max Zingler are altar servers at St. Andrews. Congratulations, Zingler family.
July 2025
Tony & Nicole Foat Family
Tony and Nicole have been married for 28 years and have three children - James, Maggie, and Lillie. They moved to Tomah from Texas in 2018. Tony is retired from the U.S. Army after 21 years and currently works for the Tomah VA. Nicole currently homeschools their youngest, Lilie. Brother Tony has been a Knight for 10 years and has served as Warden, Deputy Grand Knight, Grand Knight and now Treasurer. He is a Choir Member and Lector for Queen of the Apostles Parish. Nicole is a past PCCW Vice-President and President, Religious Education Teacher, Eucharistic Minister, and Choir Member. Their children are also Choir Members. Nicole and Tony are both Small Group mentors for The Disciples Way confirmation classes. Nicole is a leader in Area Homeschool Groups. The Foat family is very active and generous with their time. We are blessed to have them as part of our council, parish, and community.
June 2025
Scott & Naomi South Family
Brother Scott has been a Knight and member of Council 4125 for five years. He previously served in the US Army and then worked at Fort McCoy for several years as a training contractor. He currently works for the same company assisting the VA with computer program support. Naomi currently works as the secretary for Queen of the Apostles School. Scott and Naomi have five children - Elizabeth, Victoria, William, Catherine and Henry. The whole family is very active in the school community and the parish.