St. Mary’s pastor says coach and his wife are ‘authentic’ people

Pacers’ coach Jim O’Brien, right, and his wife, Sharon, center, talk with Oldenburg Franciscan Sister Therese Wente on the occasion of her recent retirement. The O’Briens met Sister Therese while she served as a pastoral associate at St. Mary Parish in Indianapolis. (Submitted photo by Brett Jackson)

By John Shaughnessy

Father Michael O’Mara laughs as he remembers the first Sunday that Indiana Pacers’ head coach Jim O’Brien came to worship at St. Mary Church in Indianapolis.

After that Sunday Mass during the summer of 2007, Father O’Mara had been talking to different people in the back of the church when O’Brien, his wife, Sharon, and their daughter, Caitlyn, approached the pastor to introduce themselves.

“It didn’t hit me right away who he was when they said they were the O’Briens,” Father O’Mara recalls, laughing about his failure to recognize the coach. “In the following weeks, I read about him and put two-and-two together. I thought that was really, really cool that they were going to be with us at St. Mary’s.” (Related story: Catholic upbringing is at the heart of Pacers’ coach Jim O’Brien’s life)

The pastor thought it was even more special when Jim and Sharon O’Brien volunteered to speak during recent weekend Masses, sharing their testimonies in support of the parish’s efforts to raise funds for the Legacy for Our Mission: For Our Children and the Future capital campaign. In its 150th year of being a spiritual home for immigrants, St. Mary Parish seeks to raise $2.2 million for building renovations, a preschool and a medical clinic.

“When you meet Jim and Sharon, you won’t meet any people who are more authentic,” the pastor says. “They are very sincere, they want to do their part. They are people who truly see the opportunity before us as a parish. They see us as a developing, diverse parish. Having the O’Briens here is a true blessing because of their authenticity.”

That authenticity shows in their love and encouragement for Caitlyn, who has Down syndrome.

“With Caitlyn, they open doors so she can have opportunities in her life,” Father O’Mara says. “Caitlyn volunteers here on Thursdays with mailings and different activities in the office. She’s a very special young woman. You can see Jim and Sharon in her. They have a very, very special relationship with each other.

“Their commitment to their family is incredible and they want to create that sense of family in the community where they live. We’re going to do an art auction on Nov. 16 and Sharon is part of that committee. They just participate in everything the parish has going on whether by being on a committee or by their presence.”

Their authenticity is also revealed in their fidelity to daily Mass and the Eucharist.

“When they’re not traveling, they’ll be at noon Mass,” Father O’Mara says. “I remember the opening game of last season. Coach was here. I said to him, ‘Coach O’Brien, on a day like this, you know about anxiety.’ He said, ‘Oh, yes.’ He puts everything in perspective. When he talks, he always talks about a team effort. It’s not about him. It’s about us and how we work together.”

That commitment to family, community and the Church makes the O’Briens powerful witnesses of their faith, the priest says. It has also made Father O’Mara a fan of the Pacers again.

“Knowing them has brought out in me a new interest in the Pacers,” he says. “I feel I know what it’s like to be a parent watching a child play a sport. I want to see him and the Pacers do well. When I watch Coach O’Brien down on the floor, I feel a sense of pride, a sense of unity.

“I see his parents, his faith and the way he grew up being expressed in the way he coaches. During a game, he maintains a true sense of calm. I think that’s so much rooted in his faith.” †