Dartmouth’s Knights of Columbus chapter, Council #14236, has received a rare Double Star Council award.

The Star Council Award is administered to Knights groups that attain overall excellence in membership recruitment and retention, promotion of the fraternal insurance program and a high volume of charity work. The Double Star Award means the group has reached 200 percent of the quota.

This was the second year in a row that the Dartmouth chapter was designated Star Council.

“We were able to provide a lot of service programs and other funds that were not just parish-related, but among the community,” said Grand Knight Chris Pereira.

He said the award required that the group participate in at least 24 different charity activities under six different categories: community, church, counsel, youth, family and culture of life. The chapter currently has 90 members.

Dartmouth’s Knights of Columbus group represents two parishes, St. Julie Billiard Parish and St. Mary’s Catholic Church, but partners with other groups and organizations to help others in need. This past year, for which the group was awarded, the Knights teamed up with everyone from Dartmouth's own charitable organization My Brother’s Keeper to the Red Cross.

“We helped lead and coordinate a medical drive for the Azores. That happened this past fall into the winter. We coordinated with the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office,” said Pereira. “We gathered new or gently used medical equipment.”

The group also teamed up with UMass Dartmouth’s Catholic Campus Ministry program. Pereira said the group provides a space for students to feel welcome on campus, offering weekly dinners for students in addition to Sunday Mass.

“We do some smaller things to help out, too, like with the faith formation students at both of the parishes. They’re younger students who are going through catechism. We’ll provide some inspirational materials for them and assist them when we can,” he said.

Though the organization is based in the Catholic church, the group does not work exclusively with religious-affiliated organizations or causes. The group has even conducted smaller acts of charity, like this past fall when members organized a drive to clean up veteran’s monuments around town.

Pereira said that, after a year of great success for the Knights, there was one unfortunate ending: the loss of Lieutenant Kenneth Cotta, who passed on Jan. 3. The Knight’s annual fishing derby, which was held this past August, was co-created by Cotta.

“He was the Dartmouth Police officer who started the D.A.R.E. program and was very influential in starting the fishing derby. That was tough news,” said Pereira.

As the group plans another year of charitable work, Pereira expressed his thanks to the community.

“Our members never think of it as work. It’s something they want to do. They want to build relationships and camaraderie. When you see smiles on people’s faces, you’re ready to do it again,” he said.