meet OUR PASTOR!

Father Paul Anthony Sustayta was born on April 16th 1964 in Glendale, California to Pablo and Esther Sustayta. He is the youngest of three children and has two sisters, Patricia Broomis and Cecilia Salazar.

Fr. Paul attended Little Flower Missionary School in Los Angeles for Pre-school and kindergarten which is run by the Carmelite Sisters. Following Little Flower he entered All Saints Catholic School in Los Angeles and graduated in 1978. Around this time, his parents moved from Los Angeles and purchased a home in South Pasadena. After graduating from All Saints he was accepted to St. Francis High School in La Canada, Flintridge and graduated in 1982. 

During this time, Fr. Paul began a more serious discernment about a vocation to the Priesthood but he also wanted to attend UCLA, as his father was a longtime UCLA sports fan. Father Paul grew up attending all the football and basketball games and so was raised a Bruin. He applied to both St. John's Seminary College and UCLA. He was accepted to both but decided to enter the seminary instead. After completing two years at St. John's he had a strong desire to pursue a major in Spanish which was not offered at the seminary, so he enrolled at Cal State Los Angeles and graduated two years later in 1986 with a degree in Spanish History and Literature.

Fr. Paul continued to feel God was still calling him to be a priest, so while studying for his degree, he became involved at Holy Family in South Pasadena, his home parish. After completing his studies at Cal State, Fr. Paul was encouraged by his professors to study Spanish abroad and so he enrolled at the University of Salamanca in Spain in January of 1987. There, he lived with a family for six months and walked every day to the University for his classes in Spanish History, Literature, and Art. This experience also gave Father Paul the opportunity to travel extensively throughout Spain and other countries in Europe.

When he returned to the United States in August of that year, he entered St. John's Theologate and was ordained in 1991 at the age of 26 for the Archdiocese of Los Angles by Cardinal Mahony. His first assignment was at St. John of God in Norwalk and then Associate Pastor of St. Andrew in Pasadena. After 3 years at St. Andrew he was invited by Cardinal Mahony to pursue further studies in Education and  so enrolled at Boston College where he studied for two years earning his MeD in Religious Education and Hispanic Ministry. His thesis was on The Feast of Our Lady Of Guadalupe as a Means of Catechesis and Evangelization. 

His other assignments are as follows:

Pastor of Holy Spirit and St. Mary Magdalen in Los Angeles.

Pastor of St. Andrew, Pasadena

Pastor of St. Martin of Tours in Los Angeles

Sabbatical, followed by assisting at St. Anthony in Oxnard and St. John Chrysostom in Inglewood, St. Lorenzo Ruiz, Walnut. 

Father Paul is fluent in English and Spanish. 

His father passed away in 2010 but his mother is still living and is 96. She lives in South Pasadena. He is a dog lover. Fr. Paul’s German Shepherd, Arabella, died a few months ago.