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Saturday, Aug 15, 2009
Councilwoman Hahn Honors Father Peter Banks for Years of Service to Watts
August 15, 2009
Last Friday in City Council, I had the pleasure of honoring Father Peter Banks, who is preparing to depart Los Angeles for a new chapter in his career and in his life.
Everyone who has ever known Father Peter would agree that he is a very special man, a man of God and a highly unique individual with an infectious spirit; a man who has done more for the people of Watts than words could ever express.
With his brown robe, sneakers, and Irish accent, Father Peter has always been a stand out in the Watts community – but his appearance is only a small fraction of what sets him apart in Watts.
Father Peter hails from the town of Callooney, Ireland, where in July of 1973, he was ordained a Capuchin Franciscan priest. A few short months later, he was assigned as an Associate Pastor at Saint Lawrence of Brindisi Church in Watts. He was a man from rural Ireland who would soon become a well-loved and indispensable fixture in the mostly African-American Watts community.
Initially, he spent nine years in Watts before being assigned as director of the San Lorenzo Seminary in the Santa Ynez Valley. As he left for Santa Ynez, one of his parishioners, an elderly African American woman, approached him and said, “Never forget, Father Peter, we made you the priest that you are.” He knew just how true that statement was.
During his subsequent nine years of service in Santa Ynez, he was elected as the director of the Western American Province for the Capuchin Franciscans.
In 1998, he returned to Saint Lawrence in Watts, as Pastor. During this time, Father Peter faced new challenges in Watts. The community had since become more of a mix of African-American and Latino cultures, and there has been a lot of division between the communities. Father Peter has worked diligently to bridge that gap and bring people together. He has established a mass in Spanish and a multicultural mass which encourages the entire community to come together, regardless of race or culture.
Since my founding of the Watts Gang Task Force three and a half years ago, Father Peter has been a dedicated member, attending the meeting every week and working diligently to improve communication between the police and the community, and to give children positive alternatives to getting involved in gangs.
Father Peter says of his second run in Watts, “I have spent 11 glorious years in the place closest to my heart. Forever Watts will be a part of my soul. I thank God for giving me the opportunity to serve the greatest people on earth.”
Father Peter, we, in turn, thank God for giving us the opportunity to have you be such a vital part of our community.
Posted at 12:00 AM