Nurtured by church, Vietnamese immigrants eagerly await pope

In this Thursday, April 16, 2015 photo, Vietnamese American Catholic Ly Nguyen poses for a photograph at his home in Philadelphia. Nguyen and his family moved to Philadelphia from Vietnam more than 20 years ago and was welcomed and helped by the local Catholic church. AP

PHILADELPHIA, United States — Vietnamese Roman Catholics in Philadelphia are looking to show their gratitude to the church when Pope Francis visits the city in September.

They say the Catholic Church has nurtured and sustained them since arriving in Philadelphia, first as refugees following the fall of Saigon 40 years ago and later to join family members who came earlier.

Today there are 10,000 Vietnamese Catholics in Philadelphia and eight weekly Masses in Vietnamese.

Community members are raising funds to help those still in Southeast Asia get to Philadelphia. They’re offering up their homes to friends and strangers. And they’re working on a plan to fix up an underutilized convent to house nuns from Vietnam.

Pope Francis will be celebrating an outdoor Mass in Philadelphia after stops in Washington and New York.