Two Catholic deacons from central Alberta take to the airwaves each week, sharing their faith, strength and hope on a radio talk show broadcast from a small station in Maskwacis, a First Nations community south of Edmonton.
by Thandiwe Konguavi
“Nobody ever talks about the good parts of our faith,” said Deacon Leo Farley, who hosts Deacon’s Corner along with Deacon Rollie Comeau. “I think it’s time people got to know who Catholics really are. We live our faith and there’s a lot of Catholics who are faithful.”
Deacon’s Corner started about six months ago. It’s hosted by Farley, a deacon at Sacred Heart Parish in Wetaskiwin, Alta., and Comeau, a retired teacher and deacon at St. Augustine’s Parish in Ponoka.
The show can be heard on 89.1 Hawk Radio FM within an 80-kilometre radius of Maskwacis, as far as the surrounding communities of Leduc, Red Deer, Camrose and Alder Flats. It airs every Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. (MT) and is also online through the station’s website, hawkradio891.com.
Their reach is small, but in a media landscape dominated by anti-Catholic voices, it’s a start, Farley said.
The deacons say a lack of faith and sense of purpose is contributing to widespread depression, anxiety, addiction and even suicide in the community. Last year, Farley said there were an estimated 15 suicides in Maskwacis just within the Christmas season.
“That’s why we want to bring the truth, because people need to hear that there is somebody out there who cares, that God cares,” Farley said. “He’s not some impersonal God and that’s what we’re trying to do, is to bring people back. Our hope is that people will rediscover God in their lives.”
The Deacon's Bench
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