Flag of our Sovereign Order OVERVIEW The Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller is an ecumenical, international, Christian organization directly descended from the close collaboration of crusader knights with the hospitaller activities of the hospice founded by Amalfi merchants for pilgrims in Jerusalem before the turn of the 12the century. The resultant knight/hospitaller organization was recognized as a Sovereign Order by Pascal II in a Papal Bull dated February 15, 1113. The Sovereign Order strongly influenced history in the Holy Land, Rhodes and Malta over the next six tumultuous centuries, and established itself in its hospitaller role as well. Our modern Sovereign Order of St. John descends from the Russian Priories established by Grand Master Tsar Paul I of Russia, who welcomed the Sovereign Order following the conquest of Malta by Napoleon in 1798. The Priory of the Western United States of America is a nonprofit charitable operation benefiting among others the following: Camp Okizu near Oroville, a medically staffed summer camp and retreat for children with cancer; San Juan Bautista Child Development Center in San Jose, providing supervised medical day care for sick children, a badly needed and difficult to find service for working parents; Clausen House in Oakland, serving men and women with developmental disabilities; George Mark Children's House in San Leandro, the first hospice designed for terminally ill children in the United States; the Nicki and Joe Parisi House on the Hill, a home enabling drug-addicted mothers to live with their children while they undergo a drug rehabilitation program with an outstanding success rate of over 70%; the Clean Slate Program in San Jose, providing funds to purchase a new tattoo-removal laser system for reformed gang members, who have chosen to improve their chances for a new life; and the Veterans Home of California in Yountville. These charities are in the areas of the four respective Commanderies, addressing human needs in which the Members of the Sovereign Order have made a real difference.