Fr. Viet Peter Ho
Pastor
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Father Viet Peter Ho – fourth child in a family of eight children – was born in Qui Nhon, Vietnam. In 1984, he and thirty-one others escaped Vietnam by boat; and after six days on the ocean they were saved by a British petroleum ship, which was on its way to Japan. He began his life as a refugee in Nagasaki, Oita, and Tokyo. He came to Orange County at the end of June 1986. He attended Huntington Beach High School. In the fall of 1991, he entered Saint John Seminary College and was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Orange on June 10, 2000.
Father Viet Peter began his first priestly assignment as a parochial vicar at Saint Callistus in Garden Grove (2000-2004), which was merged into Christ Cathedral in 2012. His second assignment as parochial vicar was at Holy Family Cathedral in Orange (2004-2005). From 2005 to 2008, Bishop Brown sent him to Rome to study canon law at the Pontifical Gregorian University (Gregoriana). After obtaining his canon law license in June 2008, he was assigned to be parochial vicar at San Antonio del Cañon in Anaheim; at the same time, he was appointed Defender of the Bond and Adjutant Judicial Vicar for the Office of Canonical Services. In 2010, he was appointed Judge, and subsequently Director of the same Office in 2014. During his full time work at the Office of Canonical Services, he resided at Christ Our Savior parish in Santa Ana (2010-2013) and at Saint Mary parish in Fullerton (2013-2017). From October 2016 to June 2017, he was appointed Administrator Pro-Temp for the parish of Saint John Neumann in Irvine. In the fall of 2017, Bishop Vann permitted him to pursue his postgraduate study; he returned to Rome and attended the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas (Angelicum) for his doctoral study in canon law. The Corona-virus pandemic (Covid-19) interrupted his studies. On March 24, 2020, he and other priest-students evacuated from Rome and returned to the US, because Italy was the pandemic hot spot at the time. During this period of uncertainty, while he was waiting to return to Rome to complete his studies, Bishop Vann nominated him to be the next pastor of Saint Polycarp and a part-time Judge/Adjutant Judicial Vicar at the Tribunal and Office of Canonical Services. Shortly after receiving the news of his nomination, he successfully defended his doctoral dissertation on June 22, 2020. He arrived at and began his pastoral ministry of St. Polycarp on July 01, 2020. Bishop Kevin Vann installed him as Pastor on November 29, 2020. |
Fr. Nicolas Toan Nguyen
Parochial Vicar
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Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
My name is Father Nicolas Nguyen. I came from a family of seven siblings, two boys, and five girls. I have two older sisters, one younger brother, and three younger sisters. We were all born in Vietnam. I pursue my vocation when I was twenty years old. I was ordained to the Diocese of Orange on June 11, 2011. I am looking forward to beginning my ministry at Saint Polycarp Parish. I ask for your prayers and support as we journey together in Christ. Looking forward to meeting you all. |
Fr. Saul Alba-Infante
Parochial Vicar
Deacon Ramiro Lopez
Deacon Ramiro has been in the parish since 1969. Prior to becoming a deacon he participated in choir, lectured at Mass, was a catechist for the teen Confirmation program. He was an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, sacristan, and Knights of Columbus Grand Knight. He was ordained in 2003 to the permanent diaconate. As an ordained deacon, he assists with Funerals and Quinceañera, officiates weddings, and performs infant baptisms. He is also involved in Bereavement ministry.
Deacon Larry Leone
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My wife June and I joined St. Polycarp Parish in the early 1990’s and we brought with us four children, three boys and one girl. We became active parishioners when a desperate DRE allowed June to register our children late to SRE if June would agree to teach the 4th graders. I came home from work that evening and June informed me that I would be teaching the 4th grade SRE. I never imagined I would be hearing those words that day, but after saying “yes” there was no turning back. About ten years later, June and I joined the Diaconate formation class of 2009 and I was ordained a permanent deacon May 16, 2009. June and I have been serving St. Polycarp Church and the outlying community in many capacities ever since.
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Deacon Trí Kim Đỗ
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Deacon Tri Kim Do was ordained on October 17th, 2017. At beginning, he did not pursuit to be a deacon, but he believed in God's plan. He may not know or understand God's wisdom, but he believed and trusted in His will. It is also how he pursued God and followed Him.
His parents had three girls and three boys. As the youngest, his parents, sisters and brothers pampered and loved him. His faith and spirituality were changed drastically after he escaped his country and left his loved ones in Saigon, Vietnam. He was sponsored by Lutheran Church in Garden Grove, California. Everything was new to him in America. He never stopped praying every morning and night or stopped going to Sunday Mass although his life was a struggle. He came to confide in Mary, Mother of God because he believed Mary would intercede for him, and he believed that God would provide for him whatever he asked. God's gift for him is that he has a happy family with loving wife, Yen Ngoc Nguyen, and four wonderful children, Joseph, Mary, Noel and Matthew. He finished 5 years of college, studying for Computer Science and Mathematics at Golden West College and California State Long Beach University. A deacon is a wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit to help our Church evangelize about Jesus Christ. Usually, deacons are most visible in the parish, exercising what we call their ‘alb ministry’, as they assist the priest at Mass. Most deacons are married. God wants to provide a witness to the spirituality of a married person who works in the world. He wants them to serve as a model to the local church through the character of his life as well as through his involvement in different ministries. The desire and willingness to live the life of a servant is God’s will. He tries to demonstrate to others that a servant of God is inherently humble, and work with a spirit of simple and effective service. "Do small things with great love" - St. Teresa Calcutta |