Diversity and spirituality were the topics of discussion at the weekly meeting of the Perry Kiwanis Tuesday when Terry Wilkinson stopped by to discuss his role as chaplain at the local Tyson Fresh Meats plant located west of Perry.
Wilkinson was welcomed to the lunch meeting by 22-year Kiwanian and fellow Tyson Fresh Meats management figure Alberto Olguin.
Wilkinson said he has been chaplain at the slaughterhouse for a little more than two years. He came to Iowa from Texas in 1986 in order to pastor at a church of 17 people. Since relocating to Iowa, he has volunteered with the Clive Police Department for 17 years, worked with disaster relief and worked as a chaplain for the Veterans Administration in Des Moines for 11 years until funding was cut off for this position.
Wilkinson also spent four years in the military and has experience as a carpenter and an ambulance driver.
Wilkinson said Tyson Fresh Meats is a unique company in that it offers a chaplain program. This occurred after owner John Tyson had a religious experience 15 years ago. Wilkinson said his duty is to serve all of the employees regardless of their faith.
Each day he goes through the line, interacting with the employees. Many are immigrants, and much of his time is spent assisting them, he said.
Many immigrants are not familiar with how things are done in the U.S. Oftentimes they need some direction in navigating through processes that we often take for granted. For instance, many immigrants come from countries where everyday life involves bullets and killing. After experiencing life-and-death situations on a regular basis, they have a hard time understanding why something like a child’s car seat is so important in our society.
Wilkinson shared a story about a Tyson employee who was concerned about an envelope her child received with writing on it stating that it was top secret and they were going to be part of the CIA. It was found out that this was an invitation for their child to attend a birthday party with a secret-agent theme. The employee could not understand why someone would do such a thing.
He also told about someone who received a motor-vehicle citation. The employee took his tribal leader along with him to the hearing, and the situation became very heated and confused because neither the employee not the tribal leader understood what was going on.
On one occasion, there was an employee who had a house fire in Rippey. Afterward, Wilkinson helped the family obtain services they needed.
He listens to employees and helps them deal with problems in their lives. Wilkinson said people bring their problems to work, and for many staff members he is a sounding board. He said values have been taken out of the schools and homes, so a lot of people come into the workforce with none of these. This absence of values causes a strain at the workplace, and his duty is to assist workers in acquiring values.
