Faith Action Pioneers Reunite

On the weekend of August 6-7, Fr. Tom Gross returned from his retirement home in  Las Vegas to help kick off the 60th Anniversary Celebration of St. John Vianney Catholic Church in Kailua.  Father Tom was pastor at SJV from 1996 to 2015 and was key to getting the parish involved with Faith Action for Community Equity (FACE).

Celebrating his return were three familiar faces from Faith Action: Jessica Fernandez White, Christy MacPherson and Patrick Zukemura.  Jessica was the first Executive Director of FACE, hired in 1995.  Christy was one of the earliest community organizers and became Executive Director in 2017.  Patrick must be the longest-serving staff member of FACE, serving as an organizer from its beginnings until his retirement in 2021.