Venerini Sister Theresa Khen Doan, 91, resettled refugees

Venerini Sister Theresa Khen Doan, 91,
Resettled refugees with Catholic Charities
 
 
Sister Theresa Khen Doan, MPV, 91 of Worcester, passed away peacefully Feb. 18 at St. Mary’s Healthcare Center.
Sister Theresa was born in Saigon, Vietnam, a daughter of Khuong Quang Doan and Ngou Thi Nguyen. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Marillac College in St. Louis, Missouri, and later her master’s degree from Boston University both in social work.  
She entered a religious community in Vietnam in 1949 and professed final vows in 1957. While in Vietnam, she taught French, chemistry and math at Catholic high schools and later became a director of an orphanage of more than 2,000 children.
When the communists took over in 1975, they took over the orphanage and the school, forcing Sister Theresa to flee two years later with the help of someone who paid her way onto a fishing boat. She spent four days on an overcrowded boat, which started to sink until a Norwegian ship picked them up and brought them to safety in Thailand. She left Bangkok in 1978 and immigrated to the United States.
Sister Theresa worked with Catholic Charities Worcester County, running the refugee resettlement program for people coming from Southeast Asia. Since she could not return to Vietnam and no member of her congregation was in the United States at the time, she joined the Religious Venerini Sisters and professed vows with them in 1981.
By the 1990s, her work extended to anyone seeking refuge in the United States from Eastern Europe, Haiti, Cuba, and anyone trying to escape war and oppression. She was well-known not only for helping many people find housing, food, clothing and to settle into life in America, but helping them with the emotional and psychological effects of fleeing a Communist regime.  
Sister Theresa worked with Catholic Charities for many years until her retirement several years ago. She also worked for 44 years as a translator for both St. Vincent Hospital and UMass Medical Center, retiring in 2022. Over the years, she received many awards and recognition for her tireless work throughout the community.
Sister Theresa is survived by a sister, Kim Ngoc Doan and her husband, Wayne King; several nieces, nephews, great nieces, and nephews as well as her Religious Venerini Sisters and Associates. She is predeceased by two brothers and three sisters.
The Venerini Sisters would like to thank the staff at St. Mary’s Healthcare Center and Jewish Home Hospice for their loving care and concern for sister in her final days.
Her funeral Mass will be celebrated on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 10 a.m. in Our Lady of Vilna Church, 151 Sterling St., Worcester. Burial will follow at St. Bernard Cemetery, Fitchburg.
Mercadante Funeral Home & Chapel, 370 Plantation St., Worcester, is assisting with arrangements. Memorial contributions in Sister Theresa’s name can be made to: Venerini Sisters Retirement Fund, 23 Edward St., Worcester, MA. 01605.