Upon returning from Puerto Rico, I became associate pastor on a 3/4 time basis at Little St. Ann's near Downtown Los Angeles, with the understanding that the rest of my time would be devoted to the Schola. Then the pastor retired at 75, and I was appointed administrator pro-tem with Provincial approval. Most recently the Bishop requested this be extended another year.

Our little parish is quite busy for its size, with only 800 or so families, because we are an immigrant parish with four liturgical languages, five major cultures. We have Mass regularly in English, Spanish, Vietnamese and Thai, and the music at the English Mass is also in Tagalog (Filipino). We have the only ongoing Catholic congregation of Thai-speaking outside Thailand. Our parish has no school but an excellent parish “School of Religion and Family Ministry.” I’ve moved the Schola children’s section to the parish, as a local Escolania (choir school) under an assistant conductor who himself has been with the Schola since age nine; and that’s working out fine.

We have a very representative parish council and finance committee, and there are wonderful prayer groups and national colonias in the parish. The pastor still lives on the property. The people of St.Ann’s say they love their parish because it is “muy linda.” And it is, both in appearance and manner. However it has lacked some facilities and upkeep. So the main reason why I am staying longer is to complete the building we are doing, and some repairs. Then the parish is to be twinned with a larger one on the other side of the River. The neighborhood is very old – this is where the Indians lived when deAnza discovered L.A., but the Spanish built the Pueblo two miles up from the river to be safer against floods. It is a quiet part of town, and nearly everybody in the neighborhood is Catholic, especially Vietnamese and Latino. There is very little crime or danger, but it is near rough neighborhoods, and many poor people knock on our door for help.

My biggest surprise here was to find out how many of our children were born in Asia. I thought they would all be third generation Americans, but approximately a fourth of our Vietnamese kids were born “over there.” They are the nicest kids I have ever known; and that's saying something, because the Schola has always had great kids and so does Chaminade. It is touching when at Prayer of the Faithful at the end of a youth retreat, a kid prays in thanks for the “gift of freedom.”

The tower of the Church is one of the last in Los Angeles in Mission style (1948) before the Archdiocese began to build the same design everywhere to save time and money, during the big influx after WWII. So it is a charming church in architecture and design. The pastor kept it in great shape. In fact, all we really have to do now is clean up the campus, repave the lot, redo the (full interior) of the hall, and build a combination office-garage, which has been approved. The church building and rectory are in already-restored condition.

We have all classes of society around us and in parish membership, but definitely have immigrant issues to deal with on a daily basis. I use Spanish half the time each day, and sometimes even French with the elder Vietnamese. We are just beginning a Filipino Ministry program, really needed; I was surprised at how many elderly among our Filipino families cannot speak English. The Archdiocese has a bishop appointed just to work with the immigrant communities, and he does a great job (Bp. Oscar Solis, born in the Philippines). He is coming on December 21 to say a “Simbag Gabi” Mass with us, a “before Christmas” Mass in Philippine tradition – our first at St. Ann's.

A number of Marianists have seen St. Ann’s and all seem to appreciate it. This is a very good experience, and the local Brothers and Provincial Council are very supportive.

Ted Ley, SM