Vicki Ford was a stalwart Catholic Charities volunteer and supporter
Vicki Ford, a philanthropist who was a lay minister at the same Catholic parish longer than anyone else in Oregon history, died unexpectedly at home Sept. 29.
Ford, her parents, and her siblings have sustained a major commitment to Catholic social teaching and action. Part of that dedication was expressed in volunteering with and giving to Catholic Charities of Oregon.
Born in 1951 in Portland to Bob and Evelyn Dieringer, Vicki was part of a family formed in a tradition of generosity.
She attended Holy Family Catholic School, graduated from St. Mary’s Academy, and left home for the University of San Francisco where she met the love of her life Jack Milford Ford. She graduated from the University of Oregon before they married. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this past spring with their four children and a corps of grandchildren.
Vicki dedicated 42 years to being an amiable and reliable staff member at Holy Family Parish, serving as a teacher, catechist, director of religious education and pastoral associate. She joined the parish at age 4 and remained a member the rest of her life.
Vicki Ford keeps track of those attending Mass at Holy Family Church in the early days of the COVID pandemic. (Holy Family Parish via Catholic Sentinel)
Her fingerprints are on almost everything at Holy Family. She helped start an effort to fill backpacks with food for needy children at a nearby public school. She forged a partnership with the local Presbyterian church for a successful vacation Bible school. She helped thousands of children through sacraments.
Her method as a minister?
Reach people where they are and how they are.
“I learned not to place my expectations on people all the time,” she told the Catholic Sentinel in 2020. “I learned to trust the Holy Spirit more.”
A parish meeting room was named for Ford.
She volunteered at Catholic Charities and had considerable skill in pastoral ministry. One woman at a Catholic Charities residence had significant mental health challenges due to past trauma; she grew to think of Vicki as a mentor and a sounding board. While some volunteers have trouble in such situations, Vicki was able to maintain boundaries while still treating the woman with empathy.
“Vicki was a dedicated woman of faith,” says Victoria Waldrep, who leads homeless services at Catholic Charities. “She built several long-term relationships with women.”
In retirement, Vicki found joy in spending more time with her grandchildren, playing games and cheering for them in their endeavors, as well as inviting them to volunteer with her.
After her death, one grandson said she should be “the patron saint of generosity.”
Vicki will be missed by her husband, Jack Milford Ford; children, Auggie (Michelle) Ford, Tori (Thomas) Vigil, Miki Greenlee, and Nick (Jen) Ford; grandchildren, Cole, Oliver, Drew, Teddy, Hannah, Ikey, and Johnathan; and ten siblings and their families. She was preceded in death by her parents, Bob and Evelyn Dieringer, and her brother, Tim Dieringer.
A Rosary Vigil is set for Thursday, Oct. 3, 7 p.m., and a funeral Mass on Friday, Oct. 4, 11 a.m., both at Holy Family Church, 7525 SE Cesar Chavez Blvd in Portland.