Married Mission Ministry

by john feister

To say the Southwest counties of Georgia is tough territory for Catholic missioners is an understatement. Glenmary is at work in six counties there, at the far reaches of the Savannah diocese near Alabama, in an area where there is a tiny Catholic minority, extreme local poverty and evidence of abandonment all around. Plenty of people have left for opportunity elsewhere.

That may seem a natural situation for Glenmarians— no challenge seems to put them off. Imagine, though, a couple, long-married, one a permanent deacon, coming to town to help animate the two local parishes. That would be Deacon Scott Watford and his wife, Tammy. Based in Early County, they serve the needs of the communities there and in the other five counties. Holy Family parish is in Blakely, seat of Early County; St. Luke is in Cuthbert, Randolph County’s seat. People from four other counties (Miller, Clay, Stewart and Quitman) find their way to one of these two parishes.

Deacon Scott serves side by side with Glenmary Father Mike Kerin, along with Brothers Jason Muhlenkamp and Levis Kuwa. Although Tammy is not officially part of the ministry team, she is a parishioner at Holy Family parish and generously volunteers.

“I was a pastoral associate for eight years in Kansas,” explains the deacon. Father Neil came and gave a talk on the Glenmary missions.

“I thought that was great, because I’m from South Carolina, and I’m a convert,” Scott says. “I talked with him, and he encouraged me to look at the pastoral associate position.” Some years later, in 2019, sure enough, there was an opportunity to serve at Glenmary. I thought it was almost too good to be true!”

Path to Rome

Scott has an unusual background for a Catholic deacon—he attended Duke University Divinity School and then served as minister in a Methodist, then a Lutheran congregation. But he was drawn toward Roman Catholicism.

“It was kind of a gradual move,” he says. Tammy adds that she followed a similar path: “We kind of made this progress together.” Tammy, once a Southern Baptist, admits, “He was more ready than I was at first!” But now she feels at home.

The gradual move started in divinity school, says Scott, when he took a course on Catholicism. He needed an elective, and wanted to stay in divinity courses: “I knew nothing about Catholicism, and had no interest!” he says with a laugh. He read books, wrote papers, and attended daily Mass. Then the surprise: “I’d never experienced Mass. It spoke to me.” Seeds of interest and desire were planted.

His readings in Church history continued after divinity school, when he was in ministry. He was involved as pastor in the broader ecumenical movement. “But I didn't end up converting for over 20 years,” he says. He switched to Lutheranism, “I thought just being more sacramental would work for me. But, like Tammy, I never really felt at home.”

Deacon Scott is careful not to discount the value of Protestant Christianity. “But at Eucharist, I felt, in Vatican II language, the fullness of faith. It’s not that others are wrong, or that they don’t receive grace. But I was being called to something else, which I struggled with for a long time.”

For starters, he was a professional minister. He couldn’t just switch churches without finding a new profession, he thought. But he made the move nonetheless, “and everything fell into place after that. I have no idea how!” he says, laughing again. One senses the hand of Providence.

Tammy’s faith journey

The Watfords had children while they were at Duke— a boy and twin sisters, now grown. Tammy worked in banking. Then, “I was a stay-at-home mom until they were old enough to go to school. Then I worked at the school, until they got older. And now I’m back into banking, in the loan department.”

As Scott was becoming interested in Roman Ca- tholicism, she was watching, and her own faith was moved. “I love being Catholic,” she says now. “I don’t think my prayer life was as good. Catholicism is just comforting to me; it’s like a home to me.

“I love the Mass,” she continues. And she appreciates the constancy of Catholic faith. As a volunteer, Tammy organized the parish choir. “I lead the music. That’s my talent!” she says with a laugh.

Nuts and bolts

All of this growth in spirituality, this love as a couple, this love of ministry, has led Deacon Scott to a new opportunity. This summer he will become pastoral coordinator for both parishes. Father Mike will remain as sacramental minister as he works toward developing a Christian spirituality center in Cuthbert.

Much of the pastoral coordinator’s work is anything but glamorous—even small missions have accounting books, bulletins to print, a website and Facebook page to maintain (search for Holy Family Blakely to see his work). The more energizing part is his diaconal ministry: visiting the sick, leading Communion services and his role at Mass. “Working with Father Mike, I do a lot of preaching, at both parishes,” he says, gratefully. Deacon Scott is a good preacher.

That appreciation and sharing of the fullness of Catholicism is why Father Mike is so delighted with the Watfords’ presence. He considers it “a tremendous privilege” to serve with Deacon Scott. He adds that “Scott is a gifted and dedicated missionary.” Tammy’s gift of helping parishioners to sing is also on Father Mike’s gratitude list.

“It’s amazing how things just keep working here,” says Deacon Scott. “Somehow, though I hit the brick walls, all of a sudden, here comes the right person, and it gets done, much less expensively than without volunteer help. God just keeps sending the right help.”

Marriage in ministry

But something is different for a married deacon. Scott and Tammy both draw on their commitment as a married couple, “our primary vocation,” to ground their faith. He struggles not to devote inordinate time to his ministry. Each feeds the other’s practice of the faith. “That’s what’s kept us together for 40 years,” he says. (“Forty two,” she reminds him.) “We both share the really important things, like spirituality. But if we didn’t share our commitment and love of the Church, it wouldn’t be a good marriage. We’ve both come to love the Church.”

At the end of the day, Scott’s been at church all day, and “sometimes it gets pretty intense,” he says. “My favorite thing is if we just get in our [side by side] recliners, agree on a movie, and just sit together and watch. Tammy nods in agreement. Their favorite? “Now we both liked the new Top Gun,” she says. He nods in agreement. Then, back and forth, they start trying to remember all of the other ones they’ve enjoyed—together. Love shared in the mission is nurtured in everyday living.