DANIEL JOSEPH DEVER

DEVER, MONSIGNOR DANIEL JOSEPH - former superintendent of Hawaii Catholic Schools for 42 years, died October 19 at Pohai Nani Care Center in Kaneohe after a lengthy illness, 14 days shy of his 86th birthday. Dever was a priest for 59 years and Catholic schools superintendent for 42 years. He "served Hawaii as a philosopher, an ethicist, a visionary, a lover of art, an advocate for justice and a spokesman for peace," said a news release from the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu. "His tenure rode the tide of major transitions in the church, through the momentous changes brought by the Second Vatican Council and the transformation of Hawaii's Catholic School system from the responsibility of religious congregations to mostly that of lay educators," the release said. Dever was born on November 2, 1925 in Sea Isle, NJ, the son of a boat builder. He was ordained on June 7, 1952, by Archbishop Amleto G. Cicognani, who would later become the Vatican secretary of state. In 1954, at age 28, Dever was appointed superintendent of Hawaii's Catholic schools and held the position longer than anyone, the release said. He served for 16 years as moderator of the Newman Club at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, the precursor of today's Newman Center. Pope John XXIII named him a monsignor in 1962. In the 1960's and 70's, Dever founded the Institute for Religion and Social Change, was an arbitrator of labor disputes and created and chaired the ethics committee at St. Francis Medical Center. He lobbied against physician-assisted suicide and protested the Vietnam War and nuclear weapons at Pearl Harbor, the release said. The Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii recognized him as one of the 1994 recipients of it's "Living Treasures of Hawaii" award. Bishop Larry Silva, who lived down the hall from Dever at St. Stephen Diocesan Center the past six years, said, "I will miss this good and holy priest very much. He was a joy to be with and was always very supportive.....It was also inspiring to see how many friends Father Dan had made over the years, people of all generations. They would love to look in on him, and he was always happy to entertain them. Many priests, deacons and lay people have gone to him for spiritual direction, and they have been richly rewarded in the experience," Silva said. Father Dever also kept very close ties with family and friends back in Sea Isle City, through almost yearly visits home and much personal correspondence by letters and telephone. He loved hard physical work and getting out in nature, gardening in Hawaii, rowing while on trips back home in the bays behind Sea Isle, spending quality time with family and friends and telling the best jokes, and many great stories. He is survived by his brother Roger Dever of Ocean View, his brother Francis Dever and sister inlaw Cecile of Ocean View, his sister inlaw Mary Dever of Sea Isle, and brother inlaw Andrew Sannino of Williamstown, NJ. Services will be held Wednesday, November 2nd, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, with visitation at 5 p.m. and a funeral Mass at 6 p.m; reception to follow. On November 4th at 10:30 a.m., a committal service will be at St. Stephen Diocesan Center chapel; internment will follow at Hawaiian Memorial Park in Kaneohe.