From Pulpit To Matrimony: Former Catholic Priest Marries Kenyan Woman In Traditional Ceremony
For years, residents of Kasiela and Mochongoi in Kenya’s Baringo County knew Sandro Ferretto as “Father Sandro” — an Italian-born Catholic missionary who celebrated Mass, served at the altar and devoted himself to the local community.
But this week, Ferretto returned to the community in a completely different role as a groom.
The former Catholic priest has married Sharon Jepng’ok, a Tugen woman from Baringo South, in a traditional Koito marriage ceremony held in Seretion Village, Kasiela, where he once served as a parish priest.
Ferretto reportedly spent about 12 years working as a missionary in Baringo before leaving active priestly ministry. His departure marked a major turning point in his life, taking him from the Catholic priesthood and its commitment to celibacy into a new chapter centred on marriage and family.
His wedding to Sharon has attracted attention not only because of his former religious status but also because of his decision to embrace the cultural traditions of his bride.
Rather than opting solely for a conventional wedding ceremony, Ferretto participated in the Tugen/Kalenjin Koito rite, a traditional ceremony that formalises marriage and strengthens ties between families.
Images and videos from the celebration showed the former priest taking part in the customs and festivities of the community where he once served as a missionary.
The choice of venue also added a deeply symbolic dimension to the occasion.
Seretion Village is part of the community where Ferretto spent years building relationships and serving as a missionary. Returning there as a husband created a remarkable full-circle moment — he first arrived as a foreign priest serving the community and has now returned as a man joining a local family.
His marriage to Sharon also represents a meeting of two cultures: an Italian-born former missionary and a Kenyan Tugen woman coming together through a ceremony rooted in her heritage.
For the community, the wedding has become more than just a marriage celebration. It represents faith, personal choice, love, cultural identity and a new beginning.
The man once known as Father Sandro has now entered a new chapter — no longer behind the pulpit, but beside the woman with whom he has chosen to build a family.
And in Seretion Village, a community that once gathered around him as its priest, residents have now gathered to celebrate him as a husband.
But this week, Ferretto returned to the community in a completely different role as a groom.
The former Catholic priest has married Sharon Jepng’ok, a Tugen woman from Baringo South, in a traditional Koito marriage ceremony held in Seretion Village, Kasiela, where he once served as a parish priest.
Ferretto reportedly spent about 12 years working as a missionary in Baringo before leaving active priestly ministry. His departure marked a major turning point in his life, taking him from the Catholic priesthood and its commitment to celibacy into a new chapter centred on marriage and family.
His wedding to Sharon has attracted attention not only because of his former religious status but also because of his decision to embrace the cultural traditions of his bride.
Rather than opting solely for a conventional wedding ceremony, Ferretto participated in the Tugen/Kalenjin Koito rite, a traditional ceremony that formalises marriage and strengthens ties between families.
Images and videos from the celebration showed the former priest taking part in the customs and festivities of the community where he once served as a missionary.
The choice of venue also added a deeply symbolic dimension to the occasion.
Seretion Village is part of the community where Ferretto spent years building relationships and serving as a missionary. Returning there as a husband created a remarkable full-circle moment — he first arrived as a foreign priest serving the community and has now returned as a man joining a local family.
His marriage to Sharon also represents a meeting of two cultures: an Italian-born former missionary and a Kenyan Tugen woman coming together through a ceremony rooted in her heritage.
For the community, the wedding has become more than just a marriage celebration. It represents faith, personal choice, love, cultural identity and a new beginning.
The man once known as Father Sandro has now entered a new chapter — no longer behind the pulpit, but beside the woman with whom he has chosen to build a family.
And in Seretion Village, a community that once gathered around him as its priest, residents have now gathered to celebrate him as a husband.
