The parish at St. Michael Catholic Church in Greenfield remembers Deacon Wayne Davis, who died Sunday, for his larger-than-life personality, heartfelt homilies, and genuine interest in their lives.
Archbishop Charles C. Thompson will deliver the funeral mass at St. Michael Catholic Church, 519 Jefferson Blvd., at 10 a.m. Saturday.
“When Deacon Wayne was in the room, you knew Deacon Wayne was in the room,” said long-time parishioner and former St. Michael Catholic Church communications person Barbara Hembree. “There was just something about him – his size, his demeanor, his presence, his laughter, his tone – I mean, you were keenly aware that he was there.”
It wasn’t uncommon for dozens of people to gather around him for conversation after church, parishioner David O’Donnell said. That charisma extended to his homilies, which he delivered about once a month.
“They were always from the heart,” O’Donnell said. “It always felt like when he did them, he was talking directly to me.”
He brought decades of experience working as a corporate lawyer in Indianapolis to the pulpit. That helped him look at things from multiple angles, Hembree said, and bring the gospel or epistle of the day to life. More importantly, she said, he could relate the scripture to modern life.
His homilies were among parishioner David Dellacca’s fondest memories of him. He appreciated his depth of knowledge and compassion, as well as his ability to humanize disciples.
He spoke about “how there were no perfect people in the Bible other than Jesus himself and that our individual sins didn’t make us unworthy but were part of who we are. All we needed to do was ask for God’s forgiveness and embrace the path of reconciliation,” Dellacca said.
From January to July 2015, Davis served as administrator for the church while its leadership searched for a pastor after the death of the Rev. Severin Messick and the departure of the Rev. William Stumpf, who joined the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.
Davis wanted to welcome the new pastor with a gift from the parish but didn’t want to just buy something. He wanted the gift to be spiritual, Hembree said.
He challenged the parish to pledge prayers for the best possible priest to come to the church.
Hembree was skeptical. She asked if he really thought people would commit to a certain number of prayers per week and drop tallies in the collection basket for the church to count.
He did, and they delivered.
The parish of about 800 families made thousands of pledges to pray for the selection of a new pastor per week for six months and followed through on them.
The experience stuck with Hembree, so much so that it was part of her last personal conversation with the deacon on June 30.
“I can remember how you personally challenged and brought back and renewed my belief in prayer and my conviction to pray” with the collection of prayer pledges for the new pastor, she told him.
St. Michael Catholic Church pastor Aaron Jenkins worked with him on weddings, funerals, and other events through the church.
“He helped me get to know the parish a little better,” Jenkins said. “He was just a great ear for me to talk to and help me think through various issues as a pastor.”
The way he listened and followed up with people was one of his best attributes, parishioners said.
When Hembree’s husband and daughter had serious health issues, he was there to let them know they had his support.
“The deacon would always send me a text or call me or something and say, ‘I went over to church and lit a candle and said a prayer for your family today,'” Hembree said. “He was always very vigilant about that.”
Davis’s faith wasn’t limited to the confines of the church, though.
He ministered to prisoners at the New Castle Correctional Facility until his health prevented him from driving, Hembree said. He visited inmates in the Hancock County jail and inpatients at Hancock Regional Hospital. He ran a bereavement program at the church and comforted the dying and their families in their homes.
As with so much of his life, he was surrounded by people when his time came.
“He died at peace and with family,” Jenkins said. “If there’s one story that sums him up, that’s as close as I could come.”
Originally published in Greenfield Daily Reporter, 2019. Republished here for archival and portfolio purposes.