Asian and Pacific Islanders

The Office of Asian Pacific Islander Ministry opened with the new millennium. As one of the latest ethnic ministry offices, it served the needs of Filipino, Guamenian, Indonesian, Korean, Tongan, Samoan and Vietnamese communities.

The Diocese of San Bernardino commissioned the Filipino Ministry in 1992. Three years later, saw the establishment of the Filipino Diocesan Advisory Board. With communities in Corona, Temecula and Montclair, the Filipino Ministry director set up his office at St. George, Ontario. In 1999, the Ministry Formationo Institute (MFI) began a specialization course in Filipino Ministry.

The Indonesian community settled in the Cathedral City area, while the Korean community chose Norco. In 1988, the Koreans celebrated the arrival of their first pastor for the St. Andrew Kim Korean Catholic Community. The Tongan community had been in the Diocese since the late 1980's. With a community in Upland and another at St. Peter and St. Paul in Alta Loma, their combined choir performed in Colton in 1996. In 2001, another Tongan community was established at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Riverside.

The Vietnamese

Serving the liturgical needs of the Vietnamese community would have been harder had they not brought their own priests with them upon their arrival in the United States. The first Vietnamese Mass was celebrated at St. Francis De Sales Church, in Riverside in 1975. By 1981, 400 were regularly in attendance at Sunday liturgies. The Vietnamese community gathered in Corona in 1988 to celebrate the canonization of their Martyrs. In 1991, 2,000 attended a celebration at Raincross Square in Riverside. And, on October 30, 1994, the Shrine of the Presentation was dedicated in Corona. Each January the Vietnamese peoples honor their cultural heritage by celebrating their Lunar New Year (Tet Nguyen Dan). In 1999, the Vietnamese Catholic Martyrs Community hosted the New Year's celebration at St. Anne parish, in San Bernardino. In time, there would be Vietnamese communities at St. George in Ontario and Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Riverside. In 1990, the Diocese's first Vientamese seminarian entered St. John's Seminary in Camarillo. Ten years later, there were three ordained priests in a celebration in Hemet.

Other Immigrants and Refugees

Other ethnic cultures represented in the Diocese include the Hmong, Poles, Laotians, Thai, Romanian, Persian, Arab, Cuban and Chinese communities. Each had received aid from Catholic Charities in the relocation process. The Hmong community settled in Banning in 1988. In 1981, the Poles celebrated a Polish Mas at St. Catherine of Alexandria, Riverside, followed by a polka dance. On April 8, 1982, the Poles revived their Tenebrae celebration at St. Andrew Church in Riverside. In May of 1982, they held their 12th Polka Fest and mass in Chino. In 1986 the Polish society raised funds for Pope John Paul II's "Aid the Poor".

Laotians began arriving in 1980 and settled in the Sunnymead portion of Moreno Valley. In 1986 another group of Laotian refugees settled in the Banning area. Also in 1980, thousands of Cubans began a "boat lift" to freedom and were rescued by the U.S. Navy. by the time they were beginning to settle in the ara, the number waiting to enter had swelled to 5,000 refugees. The Cubans initially chose to settle in the communities of Loma Linda, Colton and Highland.

The newly arrived Nigerian Ibo people chose St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Ontario, as their worshipping communities.

(From Journey of Hope - 25th anniversary of the Diocese of San Bernardino - 1978-2003)