May 4, 2025
Third Sunday of Easter
To the Parishioners of Sacred Heart Pastorate,
Effective July 1, 2025, the following assignment changes will take place affecting our pastorate:
Fr. Cesar Valencia, PES, will be appointed Pastor of St. Michael Parish, Sioux Falls, and St. George Parish, Hartford, (Our Lady of Victory Pastorate) and become priest in solidum of Holy Family and Holy Spirit Parishes, Mitchell.
Fr. Yamato Icochea, PES, will be appointed priest in solidum of Holy Family and Holy Spirit Parishes of Mitchell, and obtain the office of Pastor over our parishes.
Fr. Juan Carlos Villavicencio, PES, will be appointed Parochial Vicar of Holy Family and Holy Spirit Parishes, Mitchell, while remaining chaplain and director of the PES Formation House in Mitchell.
These appointments come at the request of the Most Reverend Donald E. DeGrood, Bishop of the Diocese of Sioux Falls, and with the approval of the Provincial of Pro Ecclesia Sancta.
In summary, Fr. Yamato will become Pastor of Holy Family and Holy Spirit parishes, with my guidance and direction for the first year, while I relocate to the Sioux Falls area to formally serve as Pastor for Our Lady of Victory Pastorate. In addition to these appointments, Brothers Johannes Valakivi and Juan Diego Montoya will relocate to the Sioux Falls area with me. Fr. Mario Castagnola, PES, who is currently in Minnestoa, will join us as well.
While it may be a difficult transition, this is an exciting time for Pro Ecclesia Sancta and for the Diocese of Sioux Falls. This change will allow Pro Ecclesia Sancta to grow and more broadly share its ministry within the diocese and United States. These assignments also allow Pro Ecclesia Sancta to remain embedded within the Mitchell Catholic Parishes with a smooth transition of leadership. We are expecting four additional brothers to join our Formation House here in Mitchell in Fall 2025.
Please pray for our priests and brothers, our pastorate, and all those affected by this transition as we strive to seek and do God’s will.
Sincerely,
Fr. Cesar Valencia, PES