KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – At an age when most men are readying for retirement, 71-year-old Deacon David Pinto is realizing his life-long dream of becoming a priest. The Kalamazoo native and 1967 Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Central graduate will be the first priest to be ordained in the newly renovated and rededicated St. Augustine Cathedral by Bishop Paul J. Bradley this Sunday, December 20 at 10:00 a.m.
After attending Hackett Catholic High School, Deacon Pinto entered Saint Meinrad Seminary in 1967. In 1971 he graduated with a degree in Philosophy and made plans to continue studies at Saint John Provincial Seminary in Plymouth, Michigan. However, the sudden death of his father derailed his plans.
“Shortly after I began my Theology studies my father met with sudden death,” explains Deacon Pinto. “Through discernment, I decided to return home and help my mother and siblings through the loss of my father.”
The oldest of 12, Deacon Pinto put his plans to become a priest on pause. “Over the years I was there for one sibling after another, at times holding down as many as three jobs to help support my mother and the family. God was good to me as I was given many years of joy in helping my siblings grow and mature into people strong in their Catholic faith.”
He became a master tool and die maker and started Wonder Makers with his brothers, and also worked at Pinto Products.
Pinto returned to the seminary in 2017 when he was accepted as a seminarian for the Diocese of Kalamazoo. This past June, Bishop Paul J. Bradley ordained Pinto as a Transitional Deacon. Following his ordination as a priest Sunday, he will receive his first Pastoral assignment.
