Two New Members Elected to Knights of Columbus Board of Directors

ORLANDO, Florida — During the Knights of Columbus 141st Supreme Convention, held Aug. 1-3 in Orlando, over 500 delegates representing their 2 million brother Knights around the world elected two new members to the organization’s Board of Directors.
The new board members are Rene V. Sarmiento from the Philippines and Rene Trevino of California, who will each serve a three-year term beginning Sept. 1, 2023, and ending on Aug. 31, 2026.

Rene V. Sarmiento
Rene V. Sarmiento, a member of Diego Silang Council 7656 in Quezon City, has held numerous leadership positions in the Knights of Columbus since he joined the Order in 1986. Most recently, he served as Luzon North Deputy (2019-2023), and he is currently chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI). He is an active member of San Sebastián Parish, San Narciso, Zambales.
For many years, Sarmiento served in the Philippine government in various capacities. He was one of the framers of the 1987 Philippine Constitution; a commissioner of the Commission on Elections; vice-chairman of the Government of the Philippines Peace Negotiating Panel; and officer-in-charge of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process and the Cabinetin-Charge of Interfaith Initiatives. A lawyer engaged in private practice, he has also taught law for more than two decades.
Sarmiento is married to La Rainne Abad-Sarmiento, a university lecturer and current mayor of San Narciso, Zambales. They have three children and four grandchildren.

Rene Trevino

Rene Trevino, a member of St. Gregory the Great Council 10094 in San Diego, has been a Knight for 20 years. He previously served as State Deputy of California (2022-2023), and in numerous other state leadership positions, including San Diego Chapter President.
Trevino is a licensed architect in the state of California. He worked for 31 years in the Department of Defense, where in his last position he was responsible for 29 major programs and an annual budget of $1 billion. In addition, Trevino is a member of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department volunteer patrol, to which he has devoted over 4,000 volunteer hours.
He and his wife, Carla, are active members of St. Gregory the Great Parish, where together they lead a Bible study group. Trevino is also a member of the Parish Development Steering Committee, to which he offers his architectural and contract expertise.

About the Knights of Columbus
In 1882, Blessed Michael McGivney, a young parish priest in New Haven, Connecticut, founded the Knights of Columbus to serve the needs of a largely immigrant Catholic community. What began as a small fraternal benefit society has since grown into the world’s premier lay Catholic men’s organization, with more than 2 million members in over 16,600 local councils. As members of one of the world’s leading international charitable organizations, Knights around the world donated approximately 50 million service hours and nearly $185 million for worthy causes in their communities in 2022. The Knights of Columbus also offers extensive life insurance products to members and their families. Named by Forbes as one of America’s Best Insurance Companies 2023, the Knights of Columbus currently has more than $121 billion* of life insurance in force. In addition, the Knights of Columbus offers investment services in accord with Catholic social teaching through its wholly owned subsidiary, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors, which holds more than $26 billion in assets under management. Based on the founding principles of charity, unity and fraternity, the Knights of Columbus is committed to strengthening Catholic families and parishes, and to practicing faith in action through service to all in need. To learn more or to join the Knights of Columbus, please visit kofc.org/join.

*As of March 31, 2023