Father Echavarria named pastor

Father Juan D. Echavarria, administrator of St. Mary of the Hills Parish in Boylston, has been named pastor there, effective immediately.
Father Echavarria, son of Juan Francisco Echavarria and Teresa Ospina, was born March 30, 1984 in Medellin, Colombia. His education there was at Pontifical Bolivarian High School, Pontifical Bolivarian University and St. Bonaventure University, all in Medellin.
He came here in 2008 and studied at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton. As a seminarian he served at St. Patrick Parish in Whitinsville, St. Peter Parish in Northbridge and St. Louis Parish in Webster.
He was ordained a transitional deacon in December 2010 and a priest in June 2011. In July 2011 he became associate pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Whitinsville.
In 2013 he became Catholic chaplain at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and also did ministry with Hispanics at St. Peter Parish in Worcester.
In 2015 he went to study at Gregorian University in Rome and received his licentiate in canon law in July 2018.
In August 2018 he became associate pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish at Our Lady of Loreto Church in Worcester and defender of the bond in the diocesan marriage tribunal.
He became administrator at St. Mary of the Hills, while remaining defender of the bond, on Sept. 21, 2018.