RESIDENTS GIVE PASTOR A SEND-OFF.

Byline: Yvette Cabrera Daily News Staff Writer

The Rev. Tom Rush had been showered with commendations and farewell parties in the weeks leading up to his departure from Mary Immaculate Church, but on Saturday the goodbye from his community held a special place in his heart.

For at no other farewell was the community's affection for Rush so obvious as it was at Saturday morning's send-off breakfast, where more than 200 residents honored their beloved pastor in the auditorium of the Ritchie Valens Recreation Center.

Rush arrived without much fanfare, but the residents immediately burst into applause. One woman took his coat, another gave him a plate with fruit and bread. Within seconds residents had surrounded him, offering congratulations for his promotion to a leadership post in the international order of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

Overwhelmed, Rush struggled to find the words to express himself.

``It's a wonderful thing,'' he said. ``But I don't know how I fit into the picture. It's such a big thing for something so little.''

Little is not the word Assemblyman Tony Cardenas, D-Panorama City, would choose. Cardenas and City Councilman Richard Alarcon organized the event to express their gratitude for the impact Rush has had on the Northeast San Fernando Valley.

``He's just been much more than someone who was sent here to preach,'' said Cardenas, who was 9 when he met Rush. ``He went far beyond that. He's in our community, he's in our hearts.''

Rush arrived in the Valley in 1973 as pastor of San Fernando's Santa Rosa Church. In 1992, he was assigned as pastor of Mary Immaculate Church, whose congregation is mostly Latino immigrants.

It is his flock that will be difficult to leave behind, Rush said.

``I've been richly rewarded in so many ways, so many good things and so many people,'' he said.

Rush has had a hand in developing countless organizations, such as Valley Organized in Community Efforts. He has promoted voter participation and citizenship, and helped the community deal with gang violence, youth development and immigrant rights.

But residents and community leaders emphasized his giving nature and the role model he became.

``He comes at all hours of the day and night to be there for us,'' Cardenas said.

Rush was the type of pastor who would show up at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center to offer pastoral care, ``no matter what time of the day,'' said Mary Gonzales, a volunteer for Meet Each Need with Dignity.

``He never said I'll be there in a minute or I can't - he was there,'' Gonzales said.

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Photo

PHOTO The Rev. Tom Rush greets brothers Isac, 5, left, and Josue Barahona, 7, at a farewell reception Saturday in Pacoima.

Gus Ruelas/Daily News