On Friday June 25, President Barack Obama announced the appointment of Fr. Pius Pietrzyk, OP, as a member of the board of directors of the Legal Services Corporation. Fr. Pius was recommended to this position by Sen. Mitch McConnell, of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) was established in 1974 and operates as an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that promotes equal access to justice and provides grants for high-quality civil legal assistance to low-income Americans. It is the single largest provider of civil legal aid for the poor in the nation. The Corporation is headed by a bipartisan board of directors whose 11 members are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

Before entering the Dominican Order, Fr. Pius attended law school at the University of Chicago. Upon graduation, he worked in the field of corporate and securities law for the Chicago-based law firm of Sidley & Austin. In that time, he discerned a vocation to the priesthood and left the practice of law to enter religious life. He entered the Province of St. Joseph as a novice in 2002 and was ordained to the priesthood in 2008. He currently serves as Parochial Vicar in St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Zanesville, OH.

To serve as a member of the LSC board, Fr. Pius’s appointment still requires the confirmation of the United States Senate. The Senate has not yet set a schedule for the consideration of his appointment.

Fr. Pius will continue to serve the parish of St. Thomas, attending board meetings as they are held, if his appointment is confirmed.

Please pray for Fr. Pius as he works to serve our nations’s poor as they seek justice in our courts.