Ozark Atolls

Marshallese Community Outreach Coordinator Albious Latior

Pastor Clint Schnekloth

A lot can come of simple friendship. I’ve had the honor of knowing Albious Latior for many years, and over the years, we’ve partnered on many projects. He’s a good friend. I’ve learned so much from him about worker organizing, community advocacy, and especially about his Marshallese culture.

I’m a Lutheran pastor transplanted to Northwest Arkansas from the Midwest. I know very little about island life, and most of my real cultural connections have been in Norwegian, German, and Slovak contexts.

To be honest, I assumed living here for a decade would connect me a bit more to southern culture . . . but what I never imagined is that I’d be blessed to develop an intentional partnership with other transplants, but from so much further away.

Our Marshallese neighbors are a large community now in NWA. In fact, there are basically as many Marshallese in Northwest Arkansas as there are on the Marshall Islands themselves. Because of climate change and economic forces, this transition of the Marshallese people to NWA is likely to continue or even accelerate.

Like all of us transplants, the Marshallese have come here for job opportunities and connection. It’s certainly not as close to the ocean, but it’s a great place to live.

This spring, as the pandemic adversely impacted poultry workers and minority communities far earlier than the general U.S. population, I watched leaders like Albious dive headfirst into helping their communities. I was incredibly inspired by his diligence, his media savvy in telling the stories of families impacted by quarantine, his servant-like presence with those grieving the loss of loved ones, his selflessness spending hours translating documents, helping families new to this culture fill out paperwork and apply for aid.

I wanted to help, and I wanted our church to live out our calling as the body of Christ in connection to the Marshallese community.

We started out simple, hosting some Facebook fundraisers. These fundraisers raised surprising amounts of financial support. We were able to pay for utilities, rent, food, and car payments. We helped with funeral expenses.

By early summer, I could see that the work Albious was doing in his community was essential but uncompensated, so we took a leap into doing something our church hadn’t done before . . . we just started paying Albious to keep doing what he was already doing.

It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made as a pastor.

As we have continued and deepened this partnership, it’s reminded me how important it is to think mutually, especially when doing cross-cultural work. Yes, we’ve raised funds to help in the Marshallese community. But we know we’re raising those funds and giving them away with the full recognition that in many ways, we’re making up for what should have been done for the Marshallese community by their own employers, the poultry companies.

Providing financial support in the Marshallese community isn’t providing aid to a needy community. It’s more like reparations for all the ways our nation and economy has failed this resilient and caring and beautiful community. That it is centered through Good Shepherd Lutheran Church has the added benefit that it has helped our church connect in new ways to the wider community, because so many in the region have donated to our cause who aren’t necessarily affiliated with GSLC.

It also means post-pandemic, we anticipate some creative ways our church and the Marshallese church communities will have the chance to meet each other far more intentionally and regularly.

Albious and I constantly bounce ideas and strategies off one another. We see advocacy and aid as woven together in a seamless whole. Sometimes we are raising money to give it away. Other times we’re out with signs at rallies trying to get our elected officials to release the funds they are holding tightly, for the sake of those in need. Other times we are posting the facts about the failures of the poultry companies to do right by their workers. Other times we’re just out making visits, giving away Christmas presents, educating our community about eviction protections, and just telling important stories.

I’ve never quite put a full description of this story in one place, so this is that brief story. We invite you to continue to support this accompaniment ministry. We’re in this together.