On Sunday, September 14, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, parishioners of St. Andrew the First-Called Mission in Austin gathered for the Divine Liturgy to welcome the new permanent administrator — Father Petro Maletsky.
Father Petro celebrated his first Liturgy in concelebration with Father Kostyantyn Popov. The parishioners warmly and joyfully welcomed the new pastor, expressing their happiness at his arrival and their readiness to support him with prayer and shared ministry. The parishioners also sincerely thanked Father Kostyantyn for his dedicated service, spiritual care, and guidance of the community during the previous period.
Father Petro Maletsky was born on December 3, 1989, in the village of Lenkivtsi, Chernivtsi region, Ukraine. In 1997, his family moved to the Ivano-Frankivsk region, where he continued his education and spiritual formation. In 2004, he entered the Buchach Collegium named after St. Josaphat the Holy Martyr, and in 2006 he began studies at the Ivano-Frankivsk Theological Seminary, actively participating in the Brotherhood of St. Josaphat, which provided spiritual support to orphanages, schools, and hospitals.
At the same time, he earned a higher education degree from the Ivano-Frankivsk University of Law named after King Danylo Halytsky. In 2012, he married Natalia Fedoriv, with whom he raises three daughters — Anna, Anastasia, and Angelina.
Father Petro received his deacon and priestly ordinations in 2014 from Metropolitan Volodymyr Viytyshyn. He served as a temporary administrator of the parishes of St. Paraskeva and St. George, and in 2017 he was appointed pastor of the parish of the Holy Resurrection in the village of Lypivka. In 2023, he moved to the United States to continue his ministry in Chicago, and now in Austin.
The parishioners of St. Andrew the First-Called Mission expressed their heartfelt joy and support for the new administrator, wishing him fruitful ministry, spiritual inspiration, and God’s abundant blessing.
