The Rev. Daniel Vélez Rivera
VICAR
Fr. Daniel’s passion is to help make the Episcopal Church relevant and accessible to all people in their spiritual and life journeys. He is committed to nourishing and strengthening communities by raising multigenerational and multiethnic leaders to be Christ’s ambassadors inside and outside the walls of the church.
Fr. Daniel's ministry began as a church planter. He established a Hispanic ministry at Grace Church and then founded the bilingual congregation of St. Peter's ~ San Pedro in Salem, MA. He served as Interim Rector at St. Michael and All Angels in Baltimore, MD, and he consulted for the Office of Hispanic/Latino Ministries of The Episcopal Church Center.
Fr. Daniel was appointed in 2021 by the Presiding Bishop and the President of the House of Deputies to serve on the Committee for Truth Telling, Reckoning and Healing - a working group of the Episcopal Church that is tasked to help guide the Church in practical ways to heal from the injustices of racism and prejudice.
Fr. Daniel has a Bachelors Degree in Industrial Engineering and a dual master’s degree in Divinity and Social Work from Boston University. One of his most gratifying achievements was to help found Esperanza Academy, a tuition-free Episcopal middle school for girls in Lawrence, MA.
In his free time Fr. Daniel likes to be with friends and family; he enjoys cooking and eating, practicing Bikram yoga, traveling, he tries to play golf :), loves music, and he loves to learn new things.