David Andrés Álvarez-Velázquez (born 17 August 1941) is Bishop of the Diocese of Puerto Rico

Episcopal Diocese of Puerto Rico

The Episcopal Diocese of Puerto Rico is an Anglican diocese in Puerto Rico. It separated from the Episcopal Church in the USA in 1978 but was reinstated in 2002, and now forms part of Province IX...

 of the Episcopal Church of the United States(TEC), or "Iglesia Episcopal Puertorriqueña", succeeding the late Right Reverend Francisco Reus-Froylan

Francisco Reus-Froylan

The late Right Reverend Francisco Reus-Froylan retired as the fifth Diocesan Bishop of the Diocese of Puerto Rico of the Episcopal Church of the United States in 1989, two years after consecrating his eventual successor as Bishop Coadjutor. He died on November 19, 2008, at the age of 89 after a...

, the first Puerto Rican to serve as Diocesan Bishop. He has served as acting Bishop in Cuba

Cuba

The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

 and is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Episcopal Church of the United States.

After serving as Vicar of Santa Hilda Church in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico, and as Bishop Reus Froylan's administrative assistant, Alvarez-Velazquez was made Bishop Reus Froylan's Bishop Coadjutor of Puerto Rico on 20 August 1987 and Bishop of Puerto Rico on 3 December 1989.

During his years of service, he has strengthened the Episcopal Church's role within the island's health services provider sector, expanding the church's hospital holdings from one hospital (St. Luke's in Ponce, which will soon become a hospice and mental health facility) to three (adding a larger St. Luke's II in Ponce, which now has the largest cardiovascular ward in Puerto Rico, and Cristo Redentor Hospital in Guayama). The Episcopal health system will add one more facility when the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Station hospital reopens under its management. Under his leadership, the Church ceased to be a separate national church within the world Anglican community and rejoined the Episcopal Church of the United States (TEC). He currently serves on the national church's Executive Committee. Under his leadership, the Episcopal Church in Puerto Rico has improved its communications efforts, including a weekly, diocesan-wide, Sunday morning radio program and an improved full-color monthly magazine. He is increasingly serving as a regional leader in the Anglican community and contributing to the U.S. church's efforts among Hispanic Americans.

In recent years, Episcopalians have had a higher public profile in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

. During former Gov. Sila Calderón's term in office, Episcopalians held important government positions in Puerto Rico's three branches of government, including Secretary of State Ferdinand Mercado

Ferdinand Mercado

Ferdinand Mercado-Ramos is a former Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of State under Governor Sila Calderón from 2001 to 2004. His government service ended after Gov...

, Senate Minority Leader Kenneth McClintock

Kenneth McClintock

Kenneth D. McClintock-Hernández is the current Secretary of State of Puerto Rico. Mr. McClintock served as co-chair of Hillary Clinton presidential campaign's National Hispanic Leadership Council in 2008, co-chaired Clinton's successful Puerto Rico primary campaign that year and served as the...

, and Courts Administrator Mercedes Bauermeister. During Gov. Aníbal Acevedo Vilá

Aníbal Acevedo Vilá

Aníbal Salvador Acevedo Vilá is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer. He served as the eighth Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a Commonwealth of the United States, from 2005 to 2009. He is a Harvard University alumnus and a graduate of the University of Puerto Rico School of Law,...

's term, McClintock, as the Senate President, had been the highest Episcopalian in public office. During the Fortuño administration, McClintock remains the highest ranking Episcopalian while he serves as Secretary of State, which in Puerto Rico fills the role of lieutenant governor

Lieutenant governor (United States)

In the United States, 43 of the 50 states have a separate, full-time office of lieutenant governor. In most cases, the lieutenant governor is the highest officer of state after the governor, standing in for that officer when he or she is absent from the state or temporarily incapacitated...

.

In October 2007, Bishop Alvarez hosted the visit of the Episcopal Church's Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori

Katharine Jefferts Schori

Katharine Jefferts Schori is the 26th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States. Previously elected as the 9th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada, she is the first woman elected as a primate of the Anglican Communion...

, who was honored by McClintock at a Puerto Rico Senate session, attended the Diocese of Puerto Rico's 100th annual Diocesan Assembly and a service commemorating the St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital's centennial.

Several years ago, Bishop Alvarez unsuccessfully attempted to begin an orderly succession with the election of an Auxiliary Bishop, but the Diocesan Assembly did not support such efforts at the time. In 2007, the Diocesan Assembly finally authorized him to begin the search for a Bishop Co-Adjutor who would eventually succeed him. The election was expected to take place on November 21, 2009 and the new Bishop would replace Alvarez no later than 2013, but that second attempt at succession was aborted. The Bishop reaches the mandatory retirement age of 72 in August of 2013.