Father John P. Bucki, S.J.

Father John P. Bucki, S.J., who was a voice for New York City’s poor and hungry while serving at St. Francis Xavier parish in Manhattan, died of cancer at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx Sept. 2. He was 67.

He was a parochial vicar at St. Francis Xavier for 12 years, beginning in 1988. He established a soup kitchen and food pantry, which has helped thousands of needy individuals. He also served as chairman of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger and was active in interfaith initiatives on behalf of the poor and hungry.

Until recently, Father Bucki served as director of campus ministry at Le Moyne’s College in Syracuse and as rector of the college’s Jesuit community.

He served in campus ministry at Canisius College in Buffalo for 11 years, beginning in 2001. At both schools, he developed successful outreach programs to the community.

His early ministries included teaching math at Regis High School and Xavier High School, both in Manhattan, and at McQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester.

During the 1980s, he served in Nigeria and the Philippines.

A native of Buffalo, he entered the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) at St. Andrew-on-Hudson in 1968 after graduating from Canisius High School. He studied for the priesthood at Fordham University and the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, Calif. He was ordained at Fordham in 1979.

Survivors include a brother, Carl L. Bucki, and a sister, Dr. Barbara Ohm.

A Funeral Mass was offered Sept. 16 in Panasci Chapel at Le Moyne College. Burial was in the Jesuit Cemetery in Auriesville.