SAN DIEGO — Will Peterson began his new job as executive director of the Catholic Community Foundation of San Diego, effective Oct. 1.
And he owes that partly to an email forwarded to him by one of his older brothers.
“To this day, he doesn’t quite know how he got (the job announcement),” admitted Peterson, 32, “and he said (to me), ‘I don’t know what this is, but I think you might be interested.’”
His brother’s intuition was correct.
The job description immediately appealed to Peterson, who had been living in the Twin Cities area for the past three years and had been wanting to move back to his hometown.
The foundation, which is independent of the Diocese of San Diego and has its own board of trustees, was established in late 2015 as a one-stop resource for Catholic charitable giving.
It had about $35 million under management as of mid-2024 and supports about 200 funds established by individuals and organizations to provide financial stability to local parishes, schools, religious vocations, and social service charities.
The website notes that the foundation offers local Catholics “a way to leave their legacy uniquely aligned with their Catholic values and beliefs.”
Donors’ money is invested according to the socially responsible investment guidelines established by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
“Our mission is to foster and amplify Catholic philanthropy in the diocese,” Peterson said.
Originally from San Diego, Peterson grew up attending All Hallows Parish in La Jolla with his family. He is an alumnus of All Hallows Academy.
Peterson earned a bachelor’s in English in 2014 and a Master of Education in 2016, both from the University of Notre Dame. He served as a teacher at St. Therese Academy in Del Cerro 2018 to 2020.
In 2017, he founded Modern Catholic Pilgrim, which became a 501c3 nonprofit two years later. According to its mission statement, the organization provides opportunities “to experience pilgrimage and hospitality in the Catholic tradition here in the United States.”
For the past seven years, Peterson served as its founder and president. The nonprofit previously was based in San Diego, but relocated to St. Paul, Minnesota, when Peterson moved there to be closer to his then-fiancée, now wife.
Mark Neilson, board chair of the Catholic Community Foundation of San Diego, reflected on Peterson’s selection as executive director.
“His energy and strong Catholic faith, coupled with his San Diego roots and experience in leading an early-stage organization to higher ground, made him a unanimous choice of our search committee from a group of other great candidates,” Neilson said.
He added that Peterson has “a servant’s heart” and that his “energy … and his love and devotion to the Catholic Church’s values and teachings” are “contagious.”
For more information, visit ccfsd.org.
