Winter Warmup
Event Name: Annual Winter Warmup Dinner Dance
Date/Time of Year: January 31, 2026
Event Tags: All Activities
Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy Tags: All Works.
Event Details: Each year the council hosts a gala dinner dance at a local venue. The council selects 3 honorees for the evening to highlight their significant service to our local community. The council also presents awards to recognize volunteers to our parish. The evening includes a cocktail hour, complimentary Champagne, a silent auction, TV Raffle, live music and dancing, and more. All proceeds from the night go to the Council’s operations and charity funds and towards a donation/gift to our honorees.
This year, the Winter Warmup will be held on Saturday January 31, 2026. The schedule of events that evening will be:
- Cocktail Hour and start of the auction at 5:00pm (Open to all)
- Dinner served starting at 6:00pm
- Live Music and Dancing for the rest of the night
- Auctions close approx. 8:30pm
- Live TV Raffle at approx. 8:30pm
Tickets: Tickets will be available for reservation by sending an email to our officers or can be purchased online for $100/person at the Andover KOC Store starting in December 2025.
John DeCourcy TORCH AWARD
2014: Bridget Shaheen & Lazarus House
2015: DeeDee O'Brien & Ironstone Farm
2016: Rev. Peter Gori, O.S.A.
2017: St. Augustine Parish
2018: Yvon Cormier and James Greeley
2019: Paul Salafia, Katie Scanlon Leblanc, and Mary Wesson
2020: Andrew Flanagan, Rev. Arthur Johnson, O.S.A, and Jim & Peter Lafond
2021: Andover and North Andover Fire Department & Paramedics, Holy Family Hospital, Lawrence General Hospital
2022: Sr. Paula St. Katherine Murphy and Sr. Kathleen Leary
2023: Roger & Betty Desjardins, Brad & Joanne Heim, Dr. Joseph Kelley
In 2023 award presented and named after John DeCourcy at a special event.
2024: Matthew & Liz Perry, Brian Major, and Andrew Szendey
2025: Andover/North Andover YMCA, Bill Pennington, and Alex Vispoli,
St. Joseph Award given in honor of Louis Sirois
The St. Joseph Award is presented by the Andover Knights of Columbus, Council #1078, to an individual or couple for their support of St. Augustine Parish in Andover, MA. To be eligible for the award, a volunteer must be a parishioner at St. Augustine and work/volunteer in one or more ministries at the church. The award is intended to highlight the laity without whose support the parish, our church, and our catholic community would not be as wonderful.
The award is given in the name of Louis Sirois, a fellow brother knight who provided his carpentry artisanship as a gift to the parish for many decades. To this day, many of his works and gifts to the parish (including the Ambo and the Baptismal font) can be seen in our church.
The Award is named after St. Joseph, protector of the church and of the Augustinian Order. It was established at the 2017 Winter Warmup.
Award Recipients
St. Joseph Award
St. Augustine Parish
2017: Louis Sirois
2017: Paul and Joan Dow
2018: John and Betty Barrett
2019: Peter Kannam
2020: Janie Moffitt
2021: Klara Vajda
2022: Kathy and Sean Sexton
2023: Brooke Mueller
2024: Cindy Cookson
2025: Lev and Anita Zompa
St. Michael Parish
2020: Marylou Salois
2021: Patricia Harrington
2022: Arthur Durkin
2023: Greg Serapiglia
2024: Not Presented
2025: Jim Bloise
Extraordinary Presentations
Occasionally, the Andover Knights of Columbus will allow the Winter Warmup to be the venue for a unique presentation. This may be a recognition by Council 1078 or it may be done on behalf of another organization with the permission of the council.
2017: The Augustinian Order in the Merrimack Valley - Council presented a statue of St. Augustine to the clergy at St. Augustine Parish
2018: Paul G. O'Sullivan - Council presented a plaque and gift in honor of the outgoing State Deputy.
2023: Chuck Lane - Council Presented a plaque to PGK Chuck Lane on the 20th Anniversary of the Winter Warmup.
2024: Shirley D'Agati - St. Augustine Parish presented Shirley D'Agati with a plaque commemorating 50 years of service in the Music Ministry.
