FORT MYERS | Father Robert D. Tabbert has retired after serving as Pastor at three different Diocese of Venice Parishes. Father Tabbert has been a priest for 44 years, having been ordained in 1979.
Father Robert Tabbert, retired March 2023 as Pastor of St. John XXIII Parish in Fort Myers.
For the past 16 years Father Tabbert has been in Fort Myers as Pastor at St. John XXIII Parish. There he oversaw the construction of a new Parish Life Center, Adoration Chapel and a senior affordable housing project on the campus.
Prior to his arrival at St. John XXIII, Father Tabbert was Pastor at St. Ann Parish in Naples from 1996 to 2007. There he led the campaign which built the Jubilee Center and a major addition to the Catholic school.
In 1990, Father was named Pastor at St. Peter the Apostle Parish, also in Naples, He served there for six years and was instrumental in helping get the current Parish church built.
Born in 1953 in Chicago, he attended St. John Vianney College Seminary in Miami and St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach. He was ordained to the priesthood May 19, 1979, for the Diocese of St. Petersburg, before the Diocese of Venice was established in 1984. His first Mass was celebrated at St. Andrew Parish in Cape Coral.
Early assignments for Father Tabbert included serving as Parochial Vicar at St. Martha Parish in Sarasota and then St. Jude Cathedral in St. Petersburg. He was Director of Vocations for the Diocese of St. Petersburg and the first Director of Vocations of the Diocese of Venice. He also assisted at Epiphany Cathedral in Venice before being assigned as Parochial Vicar at St. Ann in Naples prior to his first assignment as Pastor in 1990.
A retirement message from Father asks for support and prayers for the next Pastor of St. John XXIII. “I know that St. John XXIII Parish will continue to thrive, and I pray that your next Pastor will have your support and prayers. God bless you all.”
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