Source: The Denver Post

On January 24, 2001, The Denver Post reported that "local Hispanics were excited and surprised Tuesday by the addition of a Hispanic bishop to the Denver Catholic Archdiocese. 'This is a tremendous opportunity for us,' said Richard Pabon, president of the parish council at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in northwest Denver. 'We have wanted an advocate for our interests.'" Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput had requested that someone be appointed to help him serve the archdiocese, and says that "'Father Gomez has been enthusiastically received by all the people I've consulted.'" Gomez will share with Chaput in making parish visits, meetings and confirmations. Gomez, a native of Mexico, is the first Hispanic bishop to serve Denver and the first foreign-born bishop to serve in Colorado. "Gomez is one of about 25 Hispanic bishops out of a total of 300 Catholic bishops in the country. The Denver Archdiocese has about 373,000 members in the northern 24 counties of Colorado, and from 20 to 25 percent are Hispanic, Chaput said. It has been estimated that by the year 2020, the American Catholic Church will be more than half Hispanic, Gomez said...Of the nation's 50,000 Catholic priests, only about 2,000 are Hispanic, he said." Hopes are high that this appointment will help the Hispanic community feel better represented in a Church which often some see as European-oriented and bureaucratic.