DIACONATE VOCATION S
Becoming
DEACONS MARK SCAFIDI
Mark Scafidi grew up in San Francisco. He has been married for 44 years to his wife Linda and has a son, Gregory. He has served many parish ministries and coached CYO sports at St. Patrick Church in Larkspur. After earning degrees in psychology and law, he coached communication skills and mediated emotionally charged problems in increasingly difficult circumstances: incarcerated juveniles, child custody and marital dissolution, police officer-civilian disputes and patient-provider health care concerns.
TOM KRAMER
Tom Kramer earned degrees in mechanical engineering from Cal Poly and San Diego State. He founded Sirius Engineering in 2008 and is a co-founder of four medical device companies. He and his wife, Julie, raised three children, Kathleen, David and Kristine (Hunter) in San Carlos, where they have been active members of St. Charles Parish since 1992. Tom’s mother always told him, “Remember, Tommy, you will not only be judged on what you do, but also on what you don’t do.” There is always more to do. Tom’s home parish of St. Michael’s in Livermore holds a very special place in his heart. His pastor of 30 years, the late Msgr. Michael G. Adams, and Deacon Dave Rezendes were both influential in his spiritual life. He also credits his growth to the Dominican Sisters, particularly Sisters Antoninus, Francis Raphael, Annette, Bartholomew and Emmanuel. Tom’s vocation journey can be summed up as going from “Am I being called?” to “Lord, here I am. Send me.”
RICARDO ESCOBAR Ricardo Antonio Escobar was born in San Salvador, El Salvador. As a child, he was a member of the Cruzados Montañeros (an equivalent version of the Catholic Boy Scouts) and an altar server. He finished high school at Industrial Technical Institute of San Salvador. In 1990, due to the civil war, he immigrated to the United States. Shortly after coming to the U.S. he met his wife, Maribel, in the youth group of St. Anthony of Padua, Menlo Park, where he also finished his Christian initiation. Maribel and Ricardo are the proud parents of Ahtziri Galilea, 16, and Sarah Belen, 6. Maribel has been the administrative assistant for the faith formation program for 30 years. Ricardo has helped the parish in many ministries, including coordinator for the altar servers and the liturgy, giving talks to the parents of faith formation and as a catechist of RCIA. He currently works as a school bus driver for Palo Alto Unified School District.
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JUNE 2022 | CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO
