From Our Founder

Father Benedict Udaku

Growing up in Africa precisely among the Igbo people of Nigeria, I experienced firsthand the spirit of selfless service and love for other people from my humble parents Ezinna Edmund and Ezinne Angelina Nwachukwu-Udaku of Blessed Memory. As a child, I was personally moved by the compassionate spirit of my parents, especially my mother as she single-handedly cared for one of my cousins who had serious physical challenges. In the social location I grew up in, bereft of modern means and ways of caring for people with such disabilities, my mom unpretentiously welcomed my beloved cousin Emmanuel into her heart, into our home, into our lives, and into our family devotion by providing him with food, hygiene, companionship, and other necessary assistance.

At the critical moment of my seminary formation, I did experience deep love from other people, especially my late uncle and his wife Eze and Ugoeze I. E. Nwachukwu-Udaku who financially supported my studies. This compassion for others and from others was once again ignited when in the last four years of my seminary formation at Bigard Memorial Seminary Enugu, Nigeria, I worked as an infirmarian providing care for my sick brothers at the expense of time for studies and formation activities. It was during this time that I prayerfully identified and made mine the story and mission of the “Wounded Healer” (Isaiah 53:5). The disposition of a wounded healer has underlined my life as a priest from Nigeria to Spain and to the United States. It has also accompanied the way I see God, the world, and people from my seminary days in Nigeria to La Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Madrid, then from Claremont Graduate University to Azusa Pacific University. Being a wounded healer has defined the way I served in my home diocese of Ahiara and in the way I minister to God’s people in my beloved Sacred Heart Church family in Rancho Cucamonga and in the diocese of San Bernardino and beyond.

It was in Summer of 2006, when I came to the US as a doctoral student from Spain for summer pastoral experience that, through the generosity of the members of the Hispanic community at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Rancho Cucamonga and at the invitation of Deacon Roberto Garcia Cardenas, the idea to help the less privileged students started with about $2,000 which was raised by the Spanish speaking community. Since 2006, we have given education opportunities to about 97 students. Some have graduated, some have received gainful employment in Nigeria, while others are still in school. What my gracious late uncle and his wife Eze and Ugoeze I. E. Nwachukwu-Udaku did for me have been replicated in the stories of many underprivileged students in our charity program as Jesus said “Freely you have received, freely you give” (Matthew 10:8).

In 2010, after the death of my mother Ezinne Angelina and in her honor, I decided to provide free medical treatments once a year to the underprivileged population, especially the elderly and disabled. At that time we had since provided eight free medical outreaches, serving about 400 people per year.

In January of 2019 we registered our organization as Berto EdAngeli Foundation with the IRS as a Section 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. At present, we have 10 people on our Board and a local coordinator in Nigeria- Engr. Anthony Chijioke Unegbu. The organization is named after both my father and mother in memory of how they loved others especially the sick and the underprivileged. We also included the name of the late Deacon Roberto Cardenas from Sacred Heart, Rancho Cucamonga in remembrance of his caring spirit to raise the first funds that inaugurated this charitable organization.

Our mission is entrusted to Jesus through the powerful intercession of Mary– the Help of all Christians. We have as our patron saints and models, St. Therese of the Child Jesus (Doing little things with great love), St. Benedict who believes that prayer and action ought to go together (Ora et labora), St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta (Christ in the distressing disguise of the poor and the suffering), St. Ignatius of Loyola (All to the greater glory of God), St. Padre Pio (His great intercession for the sick) and Jean Vanier (1928-2019), whose life and ministry motivates me to care for people with disabilities.