Contact: Andrew Walther, Knights of Columbus, 203-824-5412, andrew.walther@kofc.org

NEW HAVEN, Conn., May 29, 2013 /Christian Newswire/ -- In the aftermath of the devastating May 20 tornado in central Oklahoma, the Knights of Columbus has taken an active role in assisting those whose lives have been turned upside down by the enormous tornado that hit Moore, and surrounding communities.

K of C relief operations in Moore are headquartered at St. Andrew Church, where its disaster coordination team is addressing community assistance requests and registering Knights of Columbus relief volunteers. Members may offer help at the either of the churches above or online at kofc.org/responders.

Members of St. Andrew's Council 9901 took to the streets of Moore May 24 to visit parish families at their homes to assess damages and needs. The Knights shared their findings with the parish administration and provide a communications link between the parish and the affected families.

Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City thanked the Knights of Columbus via twitter, writing: "Many thanks to the Knights of Columbus! The response of the Supreme, State and local councils to the Oklahoma tornado effort is outstanding."

"As an organization whose first principle is Charity, the Knights of Columbus is pleased to be able to assist those who have had their lives so disrupted by this tornado," said Supreme Knight Carl Anderson. "We continue to pray for those affected -- both the living and the deceased -- and look forward to continuing to help the survivors as they rebuild their towns and their lives."

The K of C is also among the volunteer agencies offering assistance at four Multi-Agency Resource Centers (MARCs) in Moore, Okla. Knights at the centers have already distributed approximately $20,000 for immediate relief needs, in addition to the purchase of various relief supplies totaling several thousand dollars.

In addition to their work at St. Andrew's and at the MARCs, the Knights have partnered with Catholic Charities of Oklahoma City. Working with Catholic Charities, the Knights opened a distribution center at All Saints Catholic School in Norman, Okla., on May 25 to provide personal hygiene kits, nonperishable food, cleanup materials and tools to those in the storm's wake.

Catholic Charities is also registering families for assistance and long-term recovery support with the Knights of Columbus providing emergency relief as families inform them of immediate needs.

As part of the ongoing disaster response efforts, the Knights of Columbus launched a new Twitter account -- @KofCRelief -- to share updates with members and partners through the duration of the recovery process. More detailed updates on the Oklahoma Knights response may be found at kofc.org.

Knights of Columbus Charities, Inc. is continuing to accept online donations of assistance at www.kofc.org/relief.

One hundred percent of all donations collected by Knights of Columbus Charities, Inc. will be sent to those affected by the disaster. Donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Knights of Columbus Charities, Inc., is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a charitable organization under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.

With more than 1.8 million members worldwide, the Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal organization and one of the nation's most active charitable organizations. Last year, Knights donated more than $158 million and 70 million hours to charitable causes.