A Former Jesuit Recruited By A Former Priest

United Way loaned executive left priestly calling,
raising money for nonprofit

Monday, November 24, 2008
JEREMY GRAY
News staff writer

It took a one-way bus ticket, a 90-mile bike ride, and the kindness of a stranger to get Ben Wilson from St. Paul to Birmingham, but it was love that made him stay.

In April, the 25-year-old Nebraska native was on his way to becoming a Jesuit priest when he made the trek, both as training for the priesthood and as a reason to visit Mary Ann Doughton, his friend from his days as a student at the University of Notre Dame.

When Wilson got here, he realized he and Doughton were meant to be more than friends and that the priesthood was not for him, so he decided to move to Birmingham. Wilson is just completing a 13-week stint with the United Way of Central Alabama, a job he was led to by former United Way of Central Alabama president Dan Dunne.

Wilson had long thought he was meant to be a priest. When his training called for him to take a one-way bus ticket, a phone card, and $35 and go out into the world, he decided to use the opportunity to visit Doughton. After riding a bus to Memphis, Wilson biked 90 miles to Tupelo, Miss., where he attended a small church and, as he prepared to bike to Birmingham, met a UAB student who was on her way to the city and offered him a ride. Wilson and Doughton spent the next week together, and as he headed back to Minnesota, Wilson began to consider making some big changes. "We had a lot of fun together, but we had never dated because I was always interested in the priesthood, and I couldn't do both," Wilson said. For three weeks, Wilson walked, biked and hitchhiked back from Birmingham, praying the entire time about what he should do. "I felt called to be with her," he said.

In July, Wilson moved to Birmingham to be with Doughton, who works as a campus minister at Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic School, but had no job prospects of his own. "I knew why I wanted to be here, but I didn't know what I was going to do now that I was here," Wilson said. A family friend who lives here told Wilson to meet him at his office.

When Wilson arrived, he was greeted by Dunne. In 1972, Dunne left the priesthood to get married after serving five years and then became associate director of the United Way of Jacksonville, Fla. In 1990, Dunne became executive director of the United Way of Central Alabama and retired in 2007. Dunne said he was instantly impressed with Wilson. "I thought he had a great heart and a great mind and both are aligned nicely," Dunne said. "I though he would be perfect for human service work."

At Dunne's suggestion, Wilson took a job as a loaned executive. The United Way often recruits executives to help collect donations from area businesses, according to spokeswoman Samuetta Nesbitt. Some companies do not have the manpower to give up an employee, but provide funding for the United Way to hire someone, which is how Wilson came into the United Way fold, Nesbitt said. Wilson has done a great job for the United Way's annual campaign, Nesbitt said. "He's enthusiastic, and he's adapted to Southern culture pretty well for a Yankee," Nesbitt said. On Tuesday, Wilson said he hoped to exceed his goal of collecting $500,000 in pledges by "several tens of thousands thanks to people's generosity." "Some companies are so aware of what a tough time this is and have contributed above and beyond and some are making a heroic effort to give at the levels they gave last year. The community is really behind this effort," Wilson said. When the job ends, Wilson will once again be looking for work. Wilson, however, said the job has given him an opportunity to see that the area lives up to a Birmingham News story he read soon after arriving about a study that ranked Birmingham as the most generous city in America. "It's true. In this position, I've seen it every single day," Wilson said.

Link (here)

From the Jesuit vocations page

Ben Wilson, 24, of Davenport and Omaha, graduated from Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha, Neb. In 2006, he graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.A. in philosophy and minors in both theology and anthropology. While there, he was active in campus ministry, service programs, cross-country and as a retreat leader. After graduation, he returned to Creighton Prep as a volunteer, teaching high school philosophy and theology. He has traveled to Rome, Russia, Uganda and the Dominican Republic. His personal interests include playing and composing music, running, reading, Frisbee and traveling. Link (here)