Ordination to the Transitional Diaconate
June 9, 2007

Two diocesan seminarians en route to the priesthood will be ordained transitional deacons by Bishop George W. Coleman at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 9, in St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River.

The seminarians are David C. Deston Jr. and William M. Sylvia.

Once ordained deacons, they will be able to assist the priest at Mass and be an ordinary minister of the Eucharist, proclaim the Gospel and preach, baptize, and minister at other services.

It is anticipated that both men will be ordained priests for the Fall River diocese next year.

Deston, 30, a native of Fall River, is the son of David Deston and Donna (Marshall) Deston of Fall River. His home parish is St. Thomas More in Somerset.

Sylvia, 26, who grew up in Somerset and Fall River, is the son of Kathleen (McCann) Sylvia, formerly of Fall River, and now of Sarasota, Fla., and the late William Sylvia. His home parish is Holy Name in Fall River.

Deston prepared for the priesthood at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., and in 2006 received a master’s degree in Divinity and a master’s degree in Church history. He has since been serving a pastoral year assignment at St. Michael Parish in Fall River.

He attended Letourneau and Carroll elementary schools and Morton Middle School, all in Fall River, and graduated from that city’s B.M.C. Durfee High School in 1994. He earned a degree in history with a minor in political science from UMass-Dartmouth in 1998 and then went on to work as a substitute teacher for a year before entering Mount St. Mary’s Seminary.

Sylvia attended the Wilbur School in Somerset and Notre Dame School in Fall River and graduated from Bishop Connolly High School, Fall River.

He began studies for the priesthood at Our Lady of Providence Minor Seminary and at the same time attended Rhode Island College and then Providence College, from which he earned a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy in 2003. In the 2003-2004 academic year, he participated in the Spirituality Year program at the Mary Immaculate Center in Northampton, Penn. He then entered Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Maryland, where he is currently pursuing theological studies.

While in the seminary, both men augmented their classroom studies with pastoral education assignments at various parishes, schools, and Church-sponsored facilities.