Bishop John Barres of Rockville Centre said, "Bishop Perez' great strength, pastoral insight and support of the People of God in our parishes was drawn from his years as a dedicated pastor of parishes in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia."
"He experienced every joy, sorrow and challenge a parish pastor experiences and our priests understood that he knew them and supported them," he continued.
"With his background in counseling, the depth of his prayer life and liturgical life, and his joyful and charismatic personality, Bishop Perez brings both the Joy and Laughter of the Gospel into every room he enters."
He will be installed as the eleventh Bishop of Cleveland Sept. 5.
Fr. Bellisario is a priest of the Congregation of the Mission, commonly known as the Vincentian Fathers.
"I am humbled and grateful to our Holy Father, Pope Francis, for appointing me as the next Bishop of Juneau," Fr. Bellisario said. "It is with humility, respect and great joy that I look forward to serving the people of the Diocese of Juneau."
He was born near Los Angeles Dec. 19. 1956. He attended Saint Vincent Minor Seminary in Montebello from 1971-1975 before entering the Congregation of the Mission Aug. 14, 1975.
Fr. Bellisario studied philosophy at Saint Mary's of the Barrens Seminary College in Perryville, Missouri from 1976-1980, and received his masters of divinity after studying at De Andreis Institute of Theology in Illinois from 1980-1984.
He was ordained a priest of the Congregation of the Mission June 16, 1984. He served as Dean of Students at Saint Vincent for two years before serving as a priest at various parishes in Los Angeles County.
Fr. Bellisario was also director of the DePaul Evangelization Center and a superior, and then provincial, of the DePaul Residence Center in California.
From 2003-2015 he served as director of the Daughters of Charity in Los Altos, before becoming Rector of the Co-Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Anchorage in 2014.
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From 2015 he has been the superior of the International Missions in Alaska.
He will be ordained and installed as Bishop of Juneau Oct. 10.
Hannah Brockhaus is Catholic News Agency's senior Rome correspondent. She grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, and has a degree in English from Truman State University in Missouri.