The 2022-2023 school year is Blessed Trinity’s first year without a chaplain. But there is no need to fear because there has been a new frequent smiling face on campus: Father Paul Porter. 

Father Paul is a parish priest right next door at St. Peter Chanel Catholic Church. Since the beginning of the school year, however, Father Paul has dedicated much of his time to the Blessed Trinity community. Whether it is at Jesus and Java on Tuesday mornings, Concession Confessions on Wednesdays at lunch, or flying in on a helicopter during the Patriot bowl football game, you can always find Father Paul smiling and eager to support BT students. Mrs. Todd, Administrative Assistant of Campus Ministry says, “Father Paul has honestly made the first year without a chaplain seamless. There has not been one thing we have tried to offer the students that we have not been able to do.” 

Father Paul grew up right around the corner in Marietta, attending St. Ann’s Catholic Church. He went to Pope High School, but don’t worry, he will be on the BT side during the homecoming game against Pope. Fun fact: Father Paul’s first homecoming was with a BT girl here in the BT gym. Growing up as the oldest of three boys, Father Paul played all the sports, but gravitated most towards baseball and basketball. 

He went to college at Georgia Southern and got into the party scene as he joined a fraternity. The correlation between fraternity life and priest life is not something that many are accustomed to. When asked about how he ended up in seminary and his desire to become a priest, Father Paul said: “Freshman year it was super fun. Don’t ever let anyone tell you sin isn’t fun. Sophomore year was fun, but by Junior year I had gone to the same parties 20 billion times, done the same things over and over again. I was bored, and to be honest, I thought I was depressed. I was really just living a selfish, sinful life. Not that all depression stems from egotism, but some of it really does. I became numb. Not happy, not sad, just numb which is much worse. At that point I also knew I had to graduate the next year and figure out what I wanted to do with my life, but I didn’t have a clue. Thanks be to God, somebody in the midst of all that started asking me the real important questions: ‘What do you believe in? What is the meaning of your life? What do you want from your life? Do you even believe in Catholicism?’ This person was smart enough and faithful enough to give me answers when I had questions, and these questions drew me out of the selfish, party boy life I was living. It dawned on me that I wanted to be a good father and husband, and the way I was living was not helping me achieve that. I was drawn to seminary because that is where men go to become good fathers whether that is priests or fathers of families.” 

Talking to Father Paul always leaves people smiling. Not only is he an amazing role model of the Catholic faith, but he is also a joy to talk to. If ever you need someone to talk to or have questions about the Catholic faith, take advantage of having Father Paul in our community. He understands us as high schoolers, and we are so blessed to have him around our campus. 

We ended the interview with 3 interesting facts about Father Paul: 1) He was in an episode of Shark Week. 2) He was on the Delta instructional video.  3) He is student body president HB Todd’s confirmation sponsor.

Father Paul truly lights up the lives of everyone he encounters, and we are so lucky to call him part of the Blessed Trinity family. Coach Ricky Turner, Athletic Director, sums it up perfectly, “It is awesome to have someone like Father Paul be an example to our kids at this school.”  From the BT community, Father Paul, we are truly grateful for your presence. Thank you for your guidance and light; we are praying for you!