ALBANY — Rachel Füss has been named coordinator of the Cancer Resource Center at the new Samaritan Medical and Diagnostic Center in North Albany.

Füss, 28, comes to Albany from Idaho, where her husband, Rich, was a pastor. He will now lead the First United Methodist Church congregation here. They have a daughter, Seren, 15 months.

“When I saw the advertisement for this job, I knew it was for me. I quit looking anywhere else,” Fuss said.

Born in Portland but reared mostly in Alaska, Füss has a bachelor’s degree in health promotion from Walla Walla College in Washington and a master’s in public health education from Emory University in Atlanta.

While working toward her master’s degree, Füss worked on a project that examined exercise and nutrition in relation to cancer for the National Cancer Society. She has also worked in health education.

The Cancer Resource Center will provide resources to patients who have been diagnosed with cancer and information to help their families navigate the health care system. It will also be a resource for health care professionals and community education.

“I’m excited to be creating all of this from scratch,” Füss said. “I’m a creative, artistic person. We’re going to create a multifaceted program and a much-needed resource for the communities we serve.”

The new facility will hold an open house from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 8.

Features of the Cancer Resource Center will include:

• Library: It will house books, DVDs, CDs and three computer terminals with Internet access that will allow people to access more than 14,000 magazines and scientific journals and more than 1 million e-books.

• Salon: The Rejuvenation Salon will provide assistance for people whose appearance has been affected by cancer. There will be wigs, prostheses and help with makeup and skin care.

• Community room: There will be a dividable room for classes, workshops and training sessions.

• Referral and networking services: Trained staff and volunteers will offer referrals to community agencies and resources.

“My goal is to make sure we provide the highest-quality resources available,” Füss said. “As a pastor’s wife, the world is our parish. I want to reach out with God’s love in all that we do.”