That’s where my heart is—helping others

By Bob De Witt

There aren’t many families where the son is called “Father” and the father is known as “Deacon,” but that is the case with the Potter family of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Mount Lebanon.

On June 13, 2020, Scott Potter, 59, became a permanent deacon for the Diocese of Pittsburgh, four years after his son Adam was ordained a priest, and 16 years after the elder Potter joined the Catholic Church.

“Learning that the Holy Eucharist was the real presence of Jesus and not a symbol was the driving force behind my formation,” he said. “It’s not what I had understood before becoming Catholic.”

Effective July 1, Deacon Potter is assigned to the Ministry of Sacrament and the Ministry of Word at St. Teresa of Kolkata Parish in Beechview/Brookline, and to the Ministry of Service and Charity at Jubilee Soup Kitchen in Pittsburgh.

Deacons are ordained ministers with a special calling to perform works of charity and service, proclaim the word of God, and assist in the liturgical and sacramental life of the church. They coordinate their part-time ministry with job and family responsibilities.

Potter is a systems engineer at General Dynamic Mission Systems. He and his wife Heidi are parents to six children and a son-in-law, and recently celebrated the birth of their granddaughter. When Heidi served as coordinator of the Red Door program at St. Mary of Mercy church in downtown Pittsburgh, providing free meals to the needy, he was a volunteer.

“Helping at the Red Door opened me up to the needs of the poor and the ability of the Church to provide for their physical and spiritual needs,” he said. “That’s where my heart is.”

The Deacon Formation Program provides a strong foundation for personal growth, spiritual devotion, intellectual enhancement and pastoral practice.

For men who may be interested in becoming a permanent deacon, Potter encourages them to take the first step.

“Take the time to discern whether or not it is truly a call from the Lord,” he said. “Pray about it. Talk with those you trust most. There is absolutely no shame in entering into a time of formal discernment to then have the answer be, ‘no, this is not for me.’”
 
Click here to meet the other new deacons.