Cardinal Roger Mahony confirmed the appointment of Father Truc Nguyen, a recent canon law graduate from St. Paul University in Ottawa, Canada, and former associate pastor at St. Andrew Church in Pasadena, as executive director of the Cardinal McIntyre Fund for Charity, effective Jan. 22.

A Vietnamese native, Father Nguyen, 43, was ordained by Cardinal Mahony in 2000 following studies at St. John's Seminary, Camarillo. One of ten children, Father Nguyen immigrated with his family to the U.S. in 1975, where he grew up in Orange County and worked eight years as an engineer and a production manager before entering the seminary.

Father Nguyen succeeds Susan Valerie Weight, McIntyre Fund executive director who died Jan. 6 following a sudden illness. Based at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center, he will work part-time in the archdiocesan marriage tribunal and also administer the McIntyre Fund, which distributes emergency funding through individual parishes.

"Susan Weight did a tremendous job with the McIntyre Fund. Currently, the operating budget is strong, but the basic capital needs to grow," said Father Nguyen. He noted the annual appeal for the fund takes place in parishes this year on May 6.

"This is not just another second collection --- it's parishioners reaching out their hands to help other Angelenos at a time when over 12 percent of the U.S. population lives below the poverty line," said Father Nguyen. "I want to thank parishes that truly contribute to the collection and encourage parishes that haven't contributed as much to increase their donations to the Cardinal McIntyre Fund. The preferential option for the poor in Los Angeles is not just an alternative but a moral requirement that is deeply rooted in our human conscience."

"Father Nguyen brings strong pastoral and academic skills to his new positions," said Msgr. Royale Vadakin, archdiocesan vicar general. "He will particularly focus on reminding clergy and laity of the tremendous resource the Cardinal McIntyre Fund for Charity is for families experiencing financial emergencies here in our archdiocese. Also, his dual role in both tribunal ministry and executive director of the Cardinal McIntyre Fund reflects the growing need to consolidate positions here at the ACC."