Parish: St. Elizabeth Catholic Church
Location: Guerneville, CA (Serving the Russian River area, which also includes the mission churches of St. Catherine of Siena and St. Colman).
Role: Pastor (The highest clerical authority for the parish).
Start Date: He officially became the Pastor of St. Elizabeth on July 1, 2021.
Father Peñaloza has served primarily within the Diocese of Santa Rosa, which covers Northern California counties. Before his current appointment, his path included key roles that prepared him for the responsibility of leading a parish:
Parochial Vicar (Assistant Priest): Prior to his assignment in Guerneville, Father Peñaloza served as a Parochial Vicar (an assistant or associate priest) at St. Eugene's Cathedral in Santa Rosa.
Diocesan Service: He has spent several years in the priesthood serving the Catholic communities of Sonoma County.
Based on his relatively recent move into a Pastor role (2021), here are some professional inferences:
Age: As previously noted, he is likely in his mid-30s to 50s. Being appointed as a Pastor usually requires several years of prior experience as a Parochial Vicar.
"HISTORY has been made as the First American Pope will lead the Catholic church with outsider Robert Prevost taking up name of Leo XIV after less than 24 hours of secret voting in the Sistine Chapel.
The new Pope - known to many as "Father Bob" - stepped out onto the balcony in the Vatican to cheering crowds as he greeted them by saying "peace be with you".
