Father Kevin A. Codd

In the autumn of 1952, I was born into a growing family in Spokane, Washington State. I was #7 of what would become a family of eleven children, my parents producing a new child virtually every year over the course of just eleven years. My father, Robert, was a native of Spokane, scion of an Irish-American family, while my mother, Cecilia, hailed from French Canadian stock in Yakima, Washington. As a traditional Catholic family, we never missed Mass on Sunday and all of us attended the parish school through eigth grade. Many of us continued on in Catholic high schools as well, (my own: Gonzaga Prep).

Having felt the stirrings of a priestly vocation most of my childhood, following high school, I entered Bishop White Seminary in Spokane, which was associated with Gonzaga University, from which I received my BA in philosophy and speech communications. 

Following my college years, I was assigned to study theology and make final preparations for ordination at the American College of the Immaculate Conception in Leuven (Louvain), Belgium. There I received both my Bachelor in Sacred Theology and Masters in Religious Studies from the oldest Catholic university in Europe, the Catholic University of Leuven (Louvain), before returning home for ordination to the priesthood in the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes in Spokane. 

Over the years, I have been privileged to serve in parishes both large and small, urban and rural as well as a brief stint in our diocesan mission in Santa Catarina Ixtahuacan in Guatemala and eight years as Vice-rector, then Rector/President of The American College seminary in Leuven. During those years, I completed my doctorate in Church History. 

While living in Belgium, I was privileged to walk the Camino de Santiago de Compostela and completed the journey from Leuven to Compostela in three trips over several years. Those pilgrimages became the material for two books that I have written on my Camino experience: To The Field of Stars: A Pilgrim's Journey to Santiago de Compostela (2008), and Beyond Even the Stars: A Compostela Pilgrim in France (2018). Both are available on Amazon in print and Kindle versions.

My final parish before retirement was Sacred Heart Church in Spokane where I was pastor for six years. Following retirement, I wanted to make good use of my retirement as long as I was blessed with good health, but also wanted to do so in a new way and place. After some snooping around, I found this small Catholic community of expats in Cuenca and decided that this would be a fine place to retire and yet serve God's people. I am grateful to our previous pastor, Padre Jorge Moreno and our present pastor,  Padre Joffre Astudillo for welcoming me and our community to the beautfitul Iglesia de San Francisco for our Sunday Masses and for his support of our ministry here.

Besides tending to the liturgies and spiritual needs of the Catholic expats here in Cuenca, I also assist in the Indigenous Urban Ministry of the Archdiocese of Cuenca, celebrating Masses for the indigenous families that have moved to Cuenca in search of work. On occasion, I am also invited to help various parish priests with their Sunday Masses when they will be out-of-town. 

I do my best to offer pastoral care to any and  all who might request my assistance or presence. Just let me know how I can best serve you!