The Official Newspaper of the Diocese of Little Rock
SPRINGDALE -- Across the United States and overseas there is a growing trend in large corporations and smaller businesses to offer a program called workplace chaplaincy.
While the idea of chaplains in hospitals, prisons and police departments has been around for a while, having interfaith ministers in the corporate world is a relatively new concept.
Companies are hiring or contracting with chaplains as a way to address employee issues, including mental health, retention, productivity and morale.
One of the largest American companies, Tyson Foods Inc., with corporate offices in northwest Arkansas, now has in place a chaplaincy program that serves employees in 81 plants and 161 locations.
Workplace chaplaincy programs are also used at major employers like Coca-Cola Bottling and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Some companies contract with organizations such as Corporate Chaplains of America of Wake Forest, N.C., and Marketplace Ministries of Dallas for chaplains.
The Tyson program includes the director, Alan Tyson (no relation to the Tyson Food family), and managers of chaplain operations, Charles White and Justo Gonzalez II. In addition to these full-time corporate chaplains, there are 126 part-time chaplains available to work with employees as well. These individuals work on location to serve Tyson employees at poultry plants in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Gonzalez, the manager of chaplain operations for the western division, took the position in February after serving as clinical coordinator of the pastoral care program at All Children's Hospital in St Petersburg, Fla. White was a pastor in a Baptist church in Kentucky for 20 years.
"Tyson did a national search for this position and I saw their ad," Gonzalez said. "When I first saw it, I said this is me. It is a position where you recruit, train, supervise, provide pastoral ministry and walk along side the hurting, the broken -- and just offer some grace and love."
Gonzalez's parents immigrated to the United States from Puerto Rico in the 1950s.
He, along with five brothers and two sisters, grew up with a father, Isaias, who was a social activist -- one of the pioneer leaders in the Hispanic community in Buffalo, N.Y. His mother, Bernarda, was a "prayer warrior."
"She was our spiritual roots," he said.
Even with his strong Catholic heritage, Gonzalez, 45, left the Catholic Church as a teenager.
"A friend of mine took me to a charismatic church and they had a live band. That was way too cool for a young person. I ended up going to the seminary and serving in a United Methodist Church structure and leaving my Roman Catholic roots," he said.
But while in the seminary in 1995, Gonzalez's mother died -- an event that triggered his return to the Catholic Church.
"When Mom passed away, I knew immediately, I would call Father Dave (Msgr. David Gallivan of Buffalo, N.Y.). He had been a part of our lives since I was a teenager. Father Dave, in spite of the fact that I had left the Church, had always been a model of ministry for me. At the funeral, Father Dave presided, but I was there as a Methodist minister and did some of the readings and the eulogy.
"But when I got there that morning to go into the sacristy to prepare with him, I felt a clear presence in the sense that God was saying, 'Justo, this is home. And if this is home, why aren't you here?' This caused me to take a step back and to ask the question, 'What is going on here?'" Gonzalez said.
As a result of his soul-searching, Gonzalez returned to the Catholic Church in 1998 and entered Christ the King Seminary near his hometown of Buffalo, N.Y. At that point he already had his master's degree in divinity, so "I began a course to receive my master's in pastoral ministry and I entered the formation program," he said.
Scheduled to graduate in May 2001, Gonzalez received a phone call in April that again challenged his plans. His father in Tampa, Fla., was very ill. After his graduation, Gonzalez decided to transfer to Tampa to complete his clinical pastoral education and to care for his father and help the family. Six months turned into five years.
In September 2005, Gonzalez's circumstances changed again. At that time he began the interview process with Tyson Foods. His father died Jan. 17, shortly before Gonzalez moved to Arkansas.
An empathic and personable person, Gonzalez wears many hats. He travels a great deal in covering his territory for the western division along with his other work. His dedication to the idea of workplace chaplains is apparent.
"We have a diversity of people too, not only in terms of faith traditions but in terms of cultures and linguistic abilities. We now have chaplains that number 60 Caucasian, 42 Hispanic, 18 African-American, 4 Asian, 51 bilingual and 11 females," Gonzalez said.
When these chaplains work in the various plant locations, they are there to walk the production lines and check on the employees.
"It is amazing what happens when people get to know you and trust you. One little conversation of 'How are you today?' and other things come out," he said. "People talk to us about a variety of issues. In many ways it is a spiritual employee assistance program. We walk with folks on short-term crises and counseling intervention. We will probably do up to four sessions with them. Then if we find they need other services or services beyond the skill set of the chaplains, we tap into the community resources -- spiritual or secular."
Gonzalez is a member of St. Raphael Church in Springdale and has contacted pastor Father John Antony to see how the resources in the community could work together with Tyson to help their employees.
Father Antony said he sees a lot of merit in combining the efforts of the two.
"I know that we will be working a lot with Tyson just because we have so many people who work with Tyson -- not only in white collar jobs but also the blue collar jobs -- the ones who work in the plants -- a lot of whom are Hispanic. I am sure we will have a lot of collaboration with Tyson."
Confidentiality and the requirement that chaplains cannot proselytize are key factors in the success of the program.
"All of our chaplains work ecumenically interfaith," he said. "We work with any team member regardless of their faith tradition or experience.
In working with employees, Gonzalez has his own beliefs on personal spirituality.
"You will never see me carrying a Bible. Spirituality and faith is best lived out by your actions than spoken through your words. I don't have to speak in religious terms to bring my faith and spirituality. It comes with me into the room. It is who I am -- the essence of my soul," he said.
Even in the brief time Gonzalez has been involved with the program, he has encountered some critical situations.
"In the two months here I have already dealt with marriage issues, suicide. I had a team member here talking about suicide. I would not let him leave until I felt comfortable in my own assessment that he would not. I made him make a contract with me. I am the new guy. This particular guy chose the 'new guy' for two reasons. He was Hispanic. I am Hispanic. He is Catholic. I am Catholic," Gonzalez said.
It is this diversity at Tyson that Gonzalez feels is so important. In speaking about his own selection to the position of manager of chaplain operations, he said, "I applaud Tyson for going out and recruiting diversity. That in their national search they wanted someone who was bilingual. And the fact that I am the first full-time Catholic and bilingual chaplain says volumes."
Last August, Tyson Foods was a sponsor for the first Workplace Chaplaincy Conference at Yale Divinity School in New Haven, Conn. It was organized to discuss issues, problems and trends within the various programs around the country. Plans are now set for the second conference Nov. 9-11 at the school.
"Tyson was one of the movers and shakers in bringing that meeting together," Gonzalez said, " I think we are on the cutting edge of workplace chaplaincy."
As he explained, a chaplaincy program is a win-win situation for both employer and employee.
"It is also good business because an employee that is taken care of doesn't have to carry a two-ton crisis on their back and is better able to be focused and more productive and able to stay with us longer," Gonzalez said.
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