SAN DIEGO — Augustinian Father Robert Gavotto died March 4 at Nazareth House San Diego. He was 86.
Born in San Diego, he attended St. John the Evangelist School and St. Augustine High School, where he was a member of the Class of 1955.
He began formation as an Augustinian religious in 1956, entered the Augustinian novitiate in January 1957, and professed vows the following February.
He was ordained to the priesthood on March 14, 1964, in Rome.
In 1969, he earned a doctorate in canon law.
Father Gavotto served at his alma mater, St. Augustine High School, on several occasions. The most recent was as the school’s chaplain for 12 years until his retirement in 2016.
Over the years, he held various leadership posts within the Augustinian order. For example, in the early seventies, he served in the Augustinian General Curia in Rome, where he was elected Secretary General and later Assistant General of the Order of St. Augustine.
In 1977, he accepted the invitation of Bishop Leo T. Maher to be the vice chancellor of the Diocese of San Diego, as well as the director of the Office for Evangelization.
From 1980 to 1987, he was the pastor of St. Patrick’s Parish in San Diego.
Father Gavotto’s funeral Mass was celebrated March 11 at All Hallows Parish in La Jolla. Burial followed at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum.
