Fr Angelo Botta was born in Bergamo, Italy, on October 9, 1924. On 15 September 1935, he entered the aspirantate of Bagnolo Piemonte, where he attended the secondary school. He began his novitiate in Castelnuovo Don Bosco and at the age of 14, asked to be sent to the missions. He was assigned to Ecuador. Thus, at such an young age, he left for the missions and completed his novitiate in Cuenca, where he made his first profession on November 21, 1940. After completing his studies, he made his perpetual vows on 21 November 1946 in Guayaquil and was ordained a priest on 8 July 1951 in Quito.
His Superiors assigned him to the "Cristóbal Colón" Institute in Guayaquil, where he spent his years as a trainee. There he spent fifteen unforgettable years, until 1966. Known for his assiduous assistance to students, teaching, and the religious formation of young people, he earnt the appreciation, affection and gratitude of the students and their families.
On 14 March 1966 he was asked to take over as the Director of the Salesian Higher Institute in Quito where he remained only one year. On 24 August 1967, he was appointed Provincial of the new Province of Ecuador-Cuenca, succeeding the First Provincial, Fr Aurelio Pischedda.
Fr Botta arrived at the head of the newly created Cuenca Province, full of life and hope, with all his baggage of good intellectual preparation, the qualities of an intelligent organizer, a worker of the Lord according to the spirit of Don Bosco, and of a zealous priest. His years of work there were very fruitful. With paternal solicitude, he visited all the missionary centers, trying to bring a word of encouragement to all his confreres and to the Salesian Family, dealing with religious discipline and supporting the pastoral work of the bishop. His concern for vocations and their formation resulted in the foundation of a new aspirantate at Cuenca. He concentrated also on the qualification of salesians, following the indications given to him by the Rector Major.
On completing his term as Provincial, in 1973, the Provinces of Quito and Cuenca were reunited and he, from 1974 to 1976, was again at the "Cristóbal Colón" Institute, as its Rector. In 1976, he left for Rome as the Secretary of Fr José Vicente Henríquez, the Councilor for the Caribbean-Pacific Region, and then remained there to help the secretarial work in view of the 21st General Chapter.
At the end of that General Chapter, the new Rector Major, Fr Egidio Viganò, asked the then Provincial of Ecuador, Fr Carlos Valverde, "the great gift" to grant him Fr Botta as his Secretary. He also held this post later also with Fr Juan Edmundo Vecchi and Fr Pascual Chávez Villanueva, until 2008.
From 2013, for health reasons, he was welcomed into the community of the infirmary of the Salesian Pontifical University (UPS) in Rome.
Other noteworthy achievements of this great Salesian include his personal acquaintance with Blessed Maria Troncatti, FMA, whose funeral he celebrated after the unfortunate aeroplane accident that cost her, her life, and the recognition he received from the Republic of Ecuador for his service to the country with the title of Commendatore in 1999.
A Salesian former pupil of his remembers him today: "Don Angelo in every situation of Salesian life and mission as a priest, was a picture of conviction and total dedication. Ever obedient and and often in the front line, he was a leader, but with humility, and without pretence. Moving on from a Salesian life surrounded by the young, to 24 hours confined to a few square metres of an office he was always with a global world view of the Congregation. His service was not an evasion, but a responsible commitment, constantly in synergy with his spiritual life. He was a disciple of life and history, culturally open and informed, convinced, essential and attractive communicator of the Word; he was a good, faithful and enterprising servant".
