SAN DIEGO — Seven men will be ordained to the permanent diaconate on Saturday, May 24, at St. Therese of Carmel Parish in Carmel Valley.
The ordination Mass, which will be celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop Felipe Pulido, will be livestreamed at sdcatholic.org/deacons2025.
Those being ordained include:
Ronald Jay Esteban Aquino
St. Rose of Lima Parish, Chula Vista
As a member of the pastoral council at St. Rose of Lima Parish, Ron Aquino came to realize “just how much pastors have on their plate.”
“In my childhood, there were more priests per parish to spread out the load,” said Aquino, 47, who shared that the priest shortage was what “pushed me over the edge to submit my application” to the diaconate formation program.
Aquino is a software applications engineer with Kaiser Permanente.
Prior to entering diaconal formation, he had been asked by multiple people if he would consider becoming a deacon.
“I became a pro at gracefully dodging the suggestion and had all my lines down,” said Aquino, who during his youth had considered becoming a priest.
But when his current pastor, Father Miguel Campos, arrived at the parish and asked him the same question, he promised to “pray on it.”
Barely a week later, his wife, Christine, “randomly” told him that she would be okay with him entering the diaconate. Previously, she had been opposed to it, having observed the busy schedules of their deacon friends and their wives.
A few months of discernment later, he started the application process.
“For me, it truly is about service,” Aquino said of diaconal ministry, “about taking the life given to you by God and (returning) it to Him in service to Him and His people.”
Ron and Christine Aquino have been married for 22 years and have two sons. They have been members of St. Rose of Lima Parish in Chula Vista for 13 years.
Robert Michael Ehnow
Sacred Heart Parish, Coronado
“I am literally a ‘cradle Catholic,’ as I was adopted through Catholic Charities as an infant,” said Bobby Ehnow, 59.
His adoptive parents were practicing Catholics, and he is a product of Catholic education from elementary school through college.
“I have always been involved in the parishes where I lived, and have been willing to serve in any capacity. I think my openness to serve in the parish and for our Church allowed me to discern a call from God to become a deacon,” said Ehnow, who remembers a priest at his high school inviting him to consider the priesthood.
Ehnow first thought about the diaconate after retiring from the U.S. Marine Corps in 2008. But, his children were still at home, so he waited.
A pilgrimage in 2016 with his wife, Colette, was pivotal in his discernment.
“One afternoon, while standing on Mt. Beatitude on the Northern Shore of Galilee,” he said, “I promised God that I would listen to him, and I pledged that I would follow Him wherever He leads me and my family.”
In 2018, he began working for the Diocese of San Diego, where he heads the Office for Life, Peace and Justice. A year after joining the diocesan staff, he was encouraged by a colleague, Jesuit Father Eddie Samaniego, to enter diaconal formation.
Being a deacon means “to serve the Church as a humble, servant leader with compassion,” he said, “to serve the poor and marginalized, to be a visible, sacramental sign of service to those most in need.”
Bobby and Colette Ehnow have been married for 21 years and have a blended family with four children. They have been members of Sacred Heart Parish in Coronado for 22 years.
José Ramon García
St. Mary Parish, Escondido
In 2007, José Ramon Garcia attended a Marriage Encounter retreat with his wife, Lucía.
That experience gave them “a different way of living life, which is done by walking on the side of God,” said García, 57, who subsequently got involved with the Marriage Encounter ministry.
“I thought, with the help of God, I can be of use to prepare marriages in a more spiritual way.”
During his involvement with Marriage Encounter, people began suggesting that he consider becoming a deacon.
At the time, García’s job required him to work most weekends. He didn’t see how he could serve as a deacon unless he found another job that left his weekends free – something that happened seven years ago, when he accepted a job as facilities manager at St. Mary Parish in Escondido.
He began diaconal formation in 2021. In 2023, he lost a son, then only 28.
“It was only through the grace of God,” he said, “(that) we were able to … continue the process.”
Among other things, he looks forward to assisting with marriage preparation as an ordained deacon.
“The family is the domestic Church,” he said, “and, in our times, I feel we need stronger marriages, so the love of God can be reflected in long-lasting marriages, so the sons and daughters from those marriages also wish to have stronger families.”
José and Lucía García have been married and members of St. Mary Parish in Escondido for 32 years. They have three sons, one deceased.
Thomas Gerald Kelly
Mission San Diego de Alcalá Parish
In Catholic school, Thomas Kelly learned about “the many ways the Church serves others.”
“I wanted to be a part of that mission,” said Kelly, 56.
Though he considered the priesthood, he also felt drawn to marriage and fatherhood.
It was while taking part in a Boy Scout hike led by Deacon Bob Ekhaml that he heard about the permanent diaconate for the first time.
“Something resonated deeply within me,” he said. “I recognized what I was being called to.”
The sense of a call never left him.
Kelly said that he and his wife, Vanessa, even discussed the topic before they got married – “even down to the detail of when to start the process.”
Once in formation, he became even more convinced of his calling.
“I have continually experienced reassurance that serving others as a permanent deacon is part of God’s plan for me,” said Kelly, a pediatrician for 26 years. “With deep gratitude and great excitement, I look forward to embracing this calling.”
A deacon, he said, is expected to be “a living representative of Christ to all people at all times.”
“By meeting others where they are and accompanying them on their faith journeys as Christ would,” he said, “I hope to empower them to invite God into their lives more fully and, in turn, to embrace their role in his divine plan.”
Thomas and Vanessa Kelly have been married for 13 years and have two boys. He has been a member of Mission San Diego de Alcalá Parish since 1983.
Miguel Madera
St. Stephen Parish, Valley Center
A deacon at Miguel Madera’s parish asked why he wasn’t thinking about becoming a deacon.
“From then on, a seed was planted and, afterwards, the priest also encouraged me,” said Madera, 54, who has worked as a waste truck driver for EDCO for the past 30 years.
After the deacon’s initial question, it would be another three years before Madera entered the formation program. And, in the interim, fellow parishioners asked why he wasn’t a deacon yet.
“I felt a bit disappointed during that time, because I never thought to get involved to that extent in the Church and, for me, it was something very new, a new path towards service,” said Madera, who has volunteered with the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults process, teaching baptismal preparation classes, and bringing the Eucharist to the sick.
Those ministries led him “to feel the calling to the diaconate.”
Reflecting on his experiences in diaconal formation, Madera said that he benefitted greatly from having a spiritual advisor and going through the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.
“It helped me to deepen my prayer … and to live what I read,” he said.
Madera considers diaconal ministry to be “a large commitment and responsibility.”
“I know that it will not be easy,” he said, “but at the end, it is a service to God through the Church and for God’s glory.”
Miguel and Juana Madera have been married for 31 years and have four children. He has been a member of St. Stephen Parish in Valley Center for 33 years.
Matthew David Murray Rifat
St. Vincent de Paul Parish
Matthew Rifat says, “My lifetime has been a period of preparation for the diaconate.”
Rifat, 55, described the Catholic faith as having been “central” and “a constant” in his life, and he said that the Sisters of Mercy who staffed St. Vincent de Paul School during his elementary school days had an impact on him that “cannot be overemphasized.”
“In fifth grade, I had an encounter with Christ, and he asked me to become his priest,” he recalled. “The world took over my life, and that call did not come to fulfillment, but an empty space in my heart and mind persisted. With marriage and family, the priesthood dropped away, but a call to commit to prayer and service continued to be heard.”
“The call never ceased from the time I was in fifth grade,” said Rifat, who has been an attorney for the past 30 years.
In obedience to that call, he entered diaconal formation, which he described as “a journey of never-ending graces.”
“Christ has walked with me during formation – and, more often than not, carried me,” he said.
Rifat believes that diaconal service involves “not merely spiritually feeding parishioners, but seeking out those who do not yet know Christ.”
“I pray daily that God gives me the wisdom and courage to serve effectively,” he said.
Matthew and Tracy Rifat have been married for 19 years and have five children. He has been a member of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Mission Hills for 47 years.
James Thomas Rizzotto
St. Stephen Parish, Valley Center
James Thomas Rizzotto stopped attending Mass after high school, and he didn’t pick up the practice again until he and his wife, Victoria, were expecting their first child.
He has made up for the lost time.
“Since my return, I have experienced just a steady growing of my faith and love for Jesus, and it was in service to him where I found my call to the diaconate,” said Rizzotto, 52, who has worked in construction for 34 years, owns a millwork company and runs a carpentry business with his son.
He felt called to the diaconate in 2008, during a silent moment at work.
“I heard a voice in my head,” he recalled, “which sounded like my own, that said, ‘Be a deacon.’”
Taking his pastor’s advice, Rizzotto waited until his children had left home before he applied to enter diaconal formation. He and his wife prayed about the decision for about three years before he finally entered.
“I don’t feel worthy, but I know it’s only by God’s grace that we can achieve anything,” he said, “and I know it’s his will that I serve.”
He looks forward to officiating at baptisms and weddings.
“Baptism, because I want to be on the front lines claiming souls for Jesus Christ; marriage, because it’s the foundation of civilization,” he explained.
“God loves the Holy Family,” said Rizzotto. “Jesus, Mary and Joseph are the family model par excellence, and I want to form and sacramentalize couples to reflect that love in the world, in the name of Jesus Christ.”
James and Victoria Rizzotto have been married for28 years and have three children. They have been members of St. Stephen Parish in Valley Center for more than 25 years.
