BRAINTREE -- The Archdiocese of Boston announced Jan. 11 that Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley has appointed Sylvia Fernandez del Castillo to be the director of the Pro-Life Office for the Archdiocese of Boston.

Del Castillo succeeds Marianne Luthin who has headed the office for the past two decades. While stepping down as director of the office, Luthin will stay on as director of Project Rachel.

In her position as director, del Castillo will oversee archdiocesan pro-life activities, including the three Pregnancy Help offices, parish pro-life efforts and collaboration with the USCCB Pro-Life Office in Washington, D.C., on behalf of the archdiocese. She previously served in the Archdiocese of Boston Pro-Life Office for six years.

Del Castillo was raised in Mexico, and attended Lycee Moliere (Paris), earning a baccalaureate degree in math and sciences. She went on to receive a bachelor of arts degree from Universidad Intercontinental in Mexico City. She is fluent in Spanish, French, and English.

She has served as president and a council member with Friends of the Cancer Center at Massachusetts General Hospital and she has also served on the board of St. Paul's Choir School. She is married to Dr. Carlos Fernandez del Castillo, on the faculty of Harvard Medical School and a physician at Mass General Hospital. They are the parents of nine children.

In a letter to archdiocesan employees announcing the appointment, Father J. Bryan Hehir, the archdiocese's Secretary for Health and Social Services, said that Cardinal O'Malley welcomed del Castillo and thanked Luthin "for her years of exceptional service as director of the Pro-Life Office."

Father Hehir added, "I also wish to extend my gratitude to Marianne for her many years of service and I am pleased that she will continue as director of Project Rachel. I welcome Sylvia to the Secretariat for Health and Social Services and look forward to working with her."