Recession: Sometimes all deacon can do is give listening ear

Greg Pair takes his role seriously as servant in community

Published: August 14, 2010

By Maryanne Meyerriecks
Fort Smith Correspondent

Maryanne Meyerriecks

Deacon Greg Pair, director of ministries at Immaculate Conception Church in Fort Smith, is seen here in his office July 30.

Maryanne Meyerriecks

Deacon Greg Pair, director of ministries at Immaculate Conception Church in Fort Smith, is seen here in his office July 30.

FORT SMITH -- For many years, evangelical churches have posted signs at their parking lot exits that proclaim, "You are now entering the mission field." Immaculate Conception Church, located in the heart of Fort Smith's downtown, has seen its opportunities to minister to parishioners and the unchurched grow in the current recession.

"A deacon's job is supposed to be out among the people serving them as best we can," Deacon Greg Pair, Immaculate Conception's director of ministries, said.

Local churches and area agencies are facing a serious challenge -- many more people in need of help and fewer funds to help them with. Immaculate Conception's charitable funds have been seriously depleted, and because of this, priority is given to members of the parish. The agencies that Pair has traditionally referred people to are facing their own financial shortfalls.

"There are other agencies," he said, "but right now nobody's donating to anybody. That's a sad situation. All the churches that used to help out don't have the funds, and we're no different here."

Some of the saddest situations involve undocumented parishioners.

"Dinora Reyes, a parishioner who's a bilingual adult and child therapist, saw a need we need to act on," Pair said. "Several young teens have gone to court for minor offenses and been given probation with orders for substance abuse counseling. They don't have social security numbers and can't get the counseling they need. If they could have had counseling, they could have headed off the problem initially."

He is working with Reyes and Deacon John Burns of St. Boniface Church, also in Fort Smith, to see how this problem can be solved.

As a member of the Latino Task Force, Pair is helping Latino women realize that there are options for them if they are abused by their spouses.

"The Crisis Center for Women built a beautiful building on South 14th Street where abused women can find temporary shelter. Our task force is also working with Western Arkansas Guidance and Counseling about getting mental health counseling for undocumented families," he said.

Pair recently joined the board of the Crawford Sebastian County Development Council, an agency that helps low-income people become self-sufficient. This agency operates the River Valley Regional Food Bank and the Community Dental Clinic and helps people find affordable housing and pay utility bills.

Last April, Immaculate Conception Church hosted tours of one of its historic buildings during Fort Smith Heritage Days. Proceeds from the tour went to the Community Clearinghouse, which provides food to qualified families and administers the Backpack Program in area schools. The tours were such a success that Immaculate Conception has volunteered to hold Heritage Days on its campus next April.

Pair has also been on the board of the Community Rescue Mission on North Third Street. The mission provides a shelter where the homeless can stay for short periods, take showers and receive spiritual guidance. There is a chapel on premises, which hosts clergy of different faiths, including Pair, for Sunday morning prayer services.

"What we're trying to do is give people hope that things can change for them," he said. "With hard economic times we can't help them all, but I can provide a listening ear, and they appreciate that."

Providing a listening ear has sometimes taken six to eight hours of Pair's work day. With limited resources, this can be discouraging, but he is sometimes encouraged when he meets people who've said, "Hey, Pastor Greg, remember me?" and realizes he has made a difference.

As director of ministries in a 5,889-member parish, Pair has many other responsibilities -- overseeing parish religious education, confirmation and youth programs, training ministers for liturgical services and helping pastor Father Greg Luyet so that he can have more time to be the spiritual leader of the parish.

"God has blessed our church so abundantly" with volunteers and staff members to accomplish these goals, he said.

A deacon is a bridge to the greater community. "Whatever happened that made people turn away from their relationship with Christ, we try to help them," Pair said. "Jesus never promised us a perfect life, but it's everybody's job to let hurting people know that we care."