Carl Paternite knows the importance of mental well-being to a person’s overall health. After years of serving patients and forming students as a faculty member, the now-retired clinical psychologist helps lead a volunteer mental wellness ministry for the St. Gregory the Great Family of Parishes, encompassing Guardian Angels, Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) and St. John Fischer churches.

Paternite is a product of Catholic education, from his Akron preschool through his University of Dayton undergraduate education. A doctorate followed at the University of Iowa, before his career took him from California to South Carolina and eventually brought him to Oxford, OH, where he later retired from Miami University.

“As I approached the end of my career … [I wanted] to give back in terms of volunteer work,” Paternite said. He initially volunteered in his profession, working with the American Psychological Association; as guardian ad litem in South Carolina, a position that advocates for children experiencing the court system; and at a full-service health clinic that offered mental health services.

When Paternite and his wife, Ginny, became parishioners at IHM, the opportunity to volunteer in a faith-based context came easily.

“One of the things that was really striking, and I think it applies to all three of the parishes in our family… [is that] we found IHM to be an incredibly welcoming faith community with a lot of opportunity for engagement. That made it easy for us to get involved. We hadn’t felt that in other parishes … . Not that they weren’t really good parishes, but they didn’t [seem quite] as welcoming.”

Carl and Ginny joined a ministry for parishioners over 60 that helps older adults find connection and social support. Ginny remains on that committee, while Carl shifted to the mental wellness ministry.

In the fall of 2023, Lisa Averion, associate director for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s Office for Persons with Disabilities, secured a grant from the Association of Catholic Mental Health Ministers to build a parish-based mental wellness ministry. With the strong support of St. Gregory the Great’s pastor, Father Steve Angi, IHM was chosen for the pilot program, along with Our Lady of Hope’s parish family (St. Phillip, St. Francis de Sales).

A nurse volunteering with IHM’s health ministry invited Paternite to an organizational meeting for the new program, and he chose to become involved. He and fellow parishioners Barbara Kraemer and Michelle Beckman-Corbin work closely in leading the ministry, and they collaborate with Kendall Keiser, the nurse heading St. Gregory the Great’s overall health ministry. At last count, the ministry had grown to 39 volunteers.

“Everyone has something to share, and this ministry has created a culture of belonging for all,” Averion said. “I attribute Carl’s leadership and his team’s commitment to breaking the stigma, building awareness and providing accompaniment for all.”

The volunteers go through Safe Parish training and mental wellness courses, and they are organized into four work groups (Communication and Promotion, Liturgy and Event Planning, Spiritual Support Groups and Youth/School/ Parent Engagement). They attended numerous meetings and made a significant time commitment to get this program off the ground.

After a careful year of planning, the spiritual support groups, an outward facing part of the ministry, started in late January and run through Easter, meeting every other week; parishioners may come to as few or as many as they choose. Paternite added that there is a mechanism built into the program for referring people, if needed, to professional services.

“It’s a framework … designed to be a safe and welcoming space for parishioners who want to discuss any aspects of mental health, including anxiety, depression, loneliness, grief, aging, memory, challenges, life transitions,” Paternite said. “It is going to be a conversation.”

In March, the ministry will offer a Youth Mental Health First Aid training session open to parents, teachers, grandparents or other adults who wish to know how to help young people battling mental health or addiction issues. And looking ahead, mental health first aid will be a part of the Mental Wellness Ministry’s ongoing training.

The ministry offers a compassionate community ready to listen, share, pray, and walk with you in faith, so that, “together, we can embrace hope and healing in Christ.”

This article appeared in the March 2025 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.