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Geneseo Knights of Columbus - Council #7817
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Thanks to the efforts of Father Michael J. McGivney, assistant pastor of St. Mary's Church in New Haven and some of his parishioners, the Connecticut state legislature on March 29, 1882, officially chartered the Knights of Columbus as a fraternal benefit society. The Order is still true to its founding principles of charity, unity and fraternity.

The Knights of Columbus was formed to render financial aid to members and their families. Mutual aid and assistance are offered to sick, disabled and needy members and their families. Social and intellectual fellowship is promoted among members and their families through educational, charitable, religious, social welfare, war relief and public relief works.

The history of the Order shows how the foresight of Father Michael J. McGivney, whose cause for sainthood is being investigated by the Vatican, brought about what has become the world's foremost Catholic fraternal benefit society. The Order has helped families obtain economic security and stability through its life insurance, annuity and long-term care programs, and has contributed time and energy worldwide to service in communities.

The Knights of Columbus has grown from several members in one council to more than 13,000 councils and 1.7 million members throughout the United States, Canada, the Philippines, Mexico, Poland, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Panama, the Bahamas, the Virgin Islands, Guatemala, Guam and Saipan.

We Knights of Columbus from the Geneseo Council are proud to be a part of this wonderful Catholic organization that has helped so many and done so much. We are happy to be doing our part to aid in the forwarding of Christ's Church here on earth.

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A.M. Best affirms Knights of Columbus rating of A++ (Superior) Order's insurance program gets highest rating for 33rd consecutive year.

New Haven, CT - June 20, 2008 - For the 33rd consecutive year, A.M. Best Company has given the Knights of Columbus its highest financial rating, A++ (Superior). A.M. Best is a worldwide rating and information agency, which conducts in-depth analyses and issues reports about the fiscal stability of insurance companies.

In its 2008 affirmation, A.M. Best cited the Knights of Columbus' "strong fraternal and insurance presence within the Catholic communities in the United States and Canada, its strong risk-adjusted capitalization as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio and the Order's consistently positive statutory operating results."

The report also stated that "the Order has a strong affinity with its large membership base through its charitable works and competitive portfolio of life insurance and annuity products."

Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson said that A.M. Best's A++ rating "confirms the wisdom of our careful investment policies in turbulent economic times, and of our adherence to our original mission of providing Catholic families with security and stability through top quality life insurance products." During the past decade, the amount K of C insurance in force has doubled to more than $67 billion.

The Knights of Columbus is an international fraternal benefit society and the world's largest lay Catholic organization with more than 1.75 million members. Last year members of the Knights of Columbus donated more than 68 million hours of volunteer service for charitable causes, and contributed more than $144 million to charity.

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NEWS FOR KNIGHTS

Standard & Poor's reaffirms Knights of Columbus AAA rating
[Standard and Poor's Header] K of C's investment portfolio has "very strong credit quality"

NEW HAVEN, CT - For the 16th consecutive year, the Knights of Columbus insurance program has earned Standard & Poor's highest rating: AAA (Extremely Strong). With more than 140 years experience, S&P is the financial industry's foremost independent rating bureau, providing investment, credit, and risk analyses of financial institutions around the world.

"K of C is achieving its primary objective of providing members and their families with high-quality, low-cost insurance products," the 2008 S&P rating report said. The Knights of Columbus insurance program has "a stable outlook," and in addition, its "capitalization is expected to remain extremely strong, and liquidity is expected to remain extremely strong also."

The report cited the strengths of the K of C's operational and financial management, calling its financial strategy "very conservative, as demonstrated by its capital structure, investment portfolio, and approach to business growth." It further claimed that "K of C's capital adequacy, as measured by Standard & Poor's capital model, is among the strongest in the industry."

Referring to the K of C's management of its assets, the S&P report stated, "the investment portfolio has very strong credit quality, with the majority of assets being invested in publicly traded investment-grade bonds. Management's strategy is to grow its business conservatively by offering profitable products and adhering to strict underwriting standards. Standard & Poor's expects this level of conservatism to continue."

"The company returned 87% of its earnings to its members in 2007," S&P added. "Its consistently strong profitability is attributable to high persistency rates, favorable mortality experience, and strong investment returns over the past 10 years."

Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson welcomed the news from S&P, and noted that "despite the difficulties suffered by so many well-known financial institutions due to the sub-prime mortgage crisis, we have not only remained solvent but improved our financial stability, while continuing to provide top quality products and service to our members."

The Knights of Columbus recently received an A.M. Best Company rating of A++ (Superior) for the 33rd consecutive year. The K of C is one of only five insurance providers in North America to receive the highest ratings from both Standard & Poor's and A.M. Best, as well as certification from the Insurance Marketplace Standards Association (IMSA) for ethical business practices.

Founded 126 years ago, the Knights of Columbus is a fraternal benefit society and is the world's largest lay Catholic organization with more than 1.75 million members. Last year members of the Knights of Columbus donated more than 68 million hours of volunteer service for charitable causes, and contributed more than $144 million to charity.

August 14, 2008

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Statement on Financial Services Markets and the Knights of Columbus
                              by Supreme Knight Carl Anderson

The upheaval in the financial markets in recent days has caused a great deal of concern virtually everywhere, among financial services professionals, regulators and consumers alike. Every major financial institution has been affected by the turmoil because of the complexity of our economy, and we are no exception. But I report to you today that there is no reason to be concerned about the value of your Knights of Columbus annuity or life insurance. Because of our very conservative approach to investing our $14 billion in assets, the impact on the Knights of Columbus has not been material, in other words, it has been minimal - far smaller than for many other organizations and the industry as a whole. We have purposefully avoided investing in the highly complex and speculative investments that have brought disaster to some of America's most well known companies.

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