>>reporter: kindergarten national laveda leaves for roam tomorrow.s to rekindle the faith of the catholics. >> better ways of communication, better ways of presenting the beauty of the faith. >>reporter: mike russo of saint marry's college. says the days before the conclave starts they will have informal meetings to decide what they're looking for in a new leader. >> areas of concern come up and they can actually call in experts to talk to them. this is before they go to the conclave. >>reporter: cardinal lavado says the biggest concern is. >> making a mistake. i know i've been seven years. i know most of these cardinals. >>reporter: but not all of them. cardinal lavado sl says voting for someone he doesn't know seems daunting. >>> four more surgeon general edward coop died at the age of 96. he became the best known and most transformative this country has ever seen. coop was a pioneer in aids. he ad voe indicated condoms for safe sex and tobacco which resulted in widespread smoking bans. >>> the federal government, gulf state and private individuals

abc 7 news spoke with cardal laveda today about taking part in this decision. >> cardinal laveda, beforeing last year he had one of the highest ranking positions at the catzc6y vein, today, he talk e.talks about the honor and responsibility of choosing a pope and just(óoe about reports of a short list of contenders. >> i don't know what the las vegas odds makers are saying today. changes are understand every day. >> he says he's excited about the opportunity to help select a pope. cardinals are eligible to vote and the 76-year-old is researching the process you put your vote in and tellers are there. >> laveda shared his criteria. >> one needs to look for a man of faith a man of prayer. a person who has shown qualities of leadership. >> the it is not without controversy including calls for los angeles cardinal mahony to opt out. he is accused of covering up he is accused of covering up for.em mahoney should attend. >> they will be among%lc÷ 117 cardinals casting+m(bn]utz to replace a man laveda has known well since the 1980s. when ascending he selected the former san francisco archbishop

he chose laveda to take his spot in the congregation.aveda will have what he expects to be an emotional farewell, then, down to business at hand. the church sex abus scandal will add to the challenges the cardinalsró/i face. >> i would say it's going to be on my mind.hnwv÷ >> turning to weather, yam rilo, texas is buried under snow. second snowiest snowy record in the city. >> conditions are dangerous for the region, emergency personnel and crews are not equipped to handle the snow. right now about 1600 customers are still without power. wind gusts about 50-60 miles per hour are pushing the blankets of snow across the roads creating whiteout conditions like you can see here. authorities shut down roads and flights out of ther'n,Ñ airport. >> you know it's been chilly here but we're so spoiled. >> yes. >> those are mazing images. >> our weather just about at the far other end of the spectrum. sheer look at clear skies now. with a mild to warm start. clear skies as we look at the western sky, readings 55 degrees in san francisco. 60s in o

would not recuse himself from the conclave and he has the support of former san francisco archbishop lavedats for the conclave himself tomorrow. >> he is the first one to have said and apologized for the error in judgment he made as a young bishop 0. >> reporter: saturday cardinal mahoney was deposed in a lawsuit out of l.a. alleging he helped cover up now fugitive priest accused of molesting as many as 26 children in the 1980s. >> when they cover up child abuse. >> reporter: this father says while he thinks cardinal mahoney has done good, he also knows the wounds of abuse go deep. >> for them, for a sitting cardinal or a cardinal who was just recently asked to step out of any kind of public administrator, to participate in one of the most public acts that a cardinal can do is something that i think i can understand where people come from. it is a very difficult thing. >> reporter: another cardinal, keith o'brien of britain, has recused himself over accusations that he behaved improperly with other priests. he denies the accusations but said he did not want to be a distraction. cardinal mah