January 3, 2026 – Nineteen Sir Knights from four Assemblies in West Tennessee joined forces to provide an Honor Guard for the Ordination of two Transitional Deacons for the Diocese of Memphis at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Memphis.
In the front row, left to right, are Deacon Chris Fagin, Bishop David Talley, Bishop Emeritus J. Terry Steib and Deacon Felix Pesce. These two Deacons will be ordained to the Priesthood later this year.
The four Assemblies that participated were: Father Charles Reid Assembly #1086, Msgr. Joseph Leppert Assembly #1923, Deacon Lee R. Hurst Assembly #2183 and Holy Cross Assembly #3048.
Point of Information: At the Transitional Ordination we were informed that the new manual had “Draw Sward” and “Return Sword” performed without the left hand grasping the tip. The opposite is in fact true. “Draw” is shown on p.41. “Return” is shown on p.47. Both are described in detail in Appendix A involving Training and Certification on p.52 Guiding with the left fingers allows precise sword placement as well as it help us liability wise. 😉