John J. Haster

1939 - 2017

BORN

1939

DIED

2017

John Haster Obituary

Name: Memorial Gathering for John J. Haster
Location: Marianist Community in Cupertino

Brother John J. Haster, S.M. Marianist

1939 - 2017

Haster, Brother John J., S.M. born in San Francisco, CA. on February 18, 1939. Died on Monday, January 16, 2017. Son of the Late John Haster and Ann (Kenny) Haster. Beloved brother to Betty and Cliff Martin, and Carole and Mike Towle, and beloved uncle to several nephews and nieces and grand-nephews and- nieces.First Profession of vows on August 15, 1958, Final profession on August 18, 1963. Besides serving on the Marianist Provincial Administration and overseeing the remodeling of the Marianist Center in Cupertino Brother John served in education at several Marianist schools including being principal at Archbishop Riordan High School, his alma mater.
Services: Saturday, January 21, 2017 Mass of Christian burial at 10:30 at St. Joseph of Cupertino Parish, 10110 N. DeAnza Blvd, Cupertino; burial following at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Los Altos. Following the burial a luncheon reception will be at the Marianist Community in Cupertino.
Memorials may be made to The Marianists Province of the U.S.; 4425 West Pine Boulevard; St. Louis, MO. 63108-2301. Capital Campaign - Sponsorship

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Published by San Francisco Chronicle from Jan. 18 to Jan. 21, 2017.

Memories and Condolences
for John Haster

5 Entries

Jerry Brown

October 12, 2024

John and I both lived in Forest Hill in San Francisco and played together as kids. His family bought a 11 inch TV which I would come by to watch. We didn’t have one then. Much later we met up at our respective birthday parties. John was a wonderful person and a part of a San Francisco long fading into memory.

Tim Roberts

January 24, 2017

I was a member of the class at Junipero Serra High School (Gardena, CA) that I believe was Bro. Haster's first year of students (starting in Sept 1962). We knew Bro. Haster as our teacher of world history, or geography, or even homeroom. What I remember most about him is his wide-eyed smile, enthusiasm, and all-around good cheer. He truly enjoyed engaging with us and challenging us to learn. Thank you for the many wonderful memories, Bro. Haster.

Skip Skirlick

January 21, 2017

> I had just gotten a Christmas card from Brother Haster in December..This news comes as a great shock to me.
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> As editor, I worked daily with Brother Haster on the 1966 Serra High, Gardena El Padre yearbook for an entire school year. He was always so helpful and professional due to his business family background and just because he was a wonderful man of good character....Brother John was very young and not too much older than we were which was the case with many of our teachers at Serra ....
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> Brother Haster treated our El Padre staff as adults in a business situation....allowing as much creative liberties as you could possibly imagine while providing all of us with a safe financial perimeter in order to pull it off . That yearbook marked a significant departure from all the other more traditional formats that came before from the photos. crazy youthful very with it 60's-ish photo placements, a gold cover, linen matte pages, to the random comments sprinkled about the entire book...as well as retaining all the documenting formality of traditional yearbooks.
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> Brother Haster worked with the publisher behind the scenes on many issues but always included me as part of the discussion. I will never forget that gracious touch of his to do that. Nothing was to be done without our full knowledge and consent and mitigations when called for and there were MANY!!!
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> But clearly it was OUR student book from the front cover to the last page........and Brother Haster allowed/"tolerated"/endorsed/facilitated the entire enterprise....top to bottom..... and that coming from what would have looked like a very conservative young man who was our faculty sponsor/advisor in clearly vertical hierarchy he was part of.
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> Brother John lead his robust crew of teenagers bent on a mission to do something innovative in the recording of one school year at Serra High. I never saw him more happy when he was enthusiastically and alertly helping us...guiding us to get that project done. Brother Haster was always available to us for input and advice. It was one of the best lessons in teamwork one could have had. He always kept deadlines in front of us in a serious but not overbearing manner when it might have been easier for him to do it that way since he was dealing with a group of South Bay surfer types for the most part.
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> Brother Haster more than once put on down field blocks for our staff in terms of staff time, creativity, financing, literary freedom of expression....Brother Haster was a man of his time with his students where there might have been a perceived more traditional/conservative upper management organizational architecture back then in the 1960's.
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> Brother Haster was the best of angels Cardinal James Francis McIntyre had in mind when he created the Catholic educational empire in the Los Angeles basin...in fact Brother Haster was exactly the kind of person Cardinal McIntyre was in philosophical and applied agreement with in a business sense.
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> To those that knew him, Brother Haster had a unique, wry and at times playful sense of humor that was never mocking or condescending but peer to peer level ....kind of rarity in an hierarchical institution. He had a sophisticated, classy way of standing shoulder to should with us blue collar kids which I was one since my dad was a refinery worker at the Union Carbide Torrance Works... Brother Haster treated us with great respect and with a brothers in arms protective embrace.
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> Brother Haster was the perfect combination of character traits that made our Serra experience so remarkable.. I cannot tell you the hours, days, weeks, and months I got this personally added Serra education from Brother John....His passing just sinks my heart but his spirit lives on inside those who knew him really well...
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> You really don't know somebody unless you live with then or work them. We worked with Brother Haster and he gave his all for our student staff...totally hands on but not hard handed...a mentor in the most noble meaning of the word.
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> What he taught me and others on our staff remain part of who we became and who we are today. We remember very well and affectionately our best teachers and counselors and advisors. Brother Haster was one of those rare people who comes into our lives and makes a difference.
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> I am so saddened by his passing on. My sincerest and most affectionate condolences to his extended family and close friends and his clerical associates.....
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> Brother Haster had an enlightened vision of life before him ....He worked the room with us and got the best we could give ..so fitting of an exchange since he gave the best of himself to us.
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> And if I have gone on too long here and made typos, that came about since the editor of final resort..the final proof reader has left the room..
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> God bless Brother Haster. Brother John will live on inside of us forever.

Val Schmiedeskamp

January 20, 2017

For my freshman year geography teacher, your light will always shine.

Mitchell Johnson

January 19, 2017

Lots of childhood memories growing up next door to John. I can still recall our many journeys we took throughout The City and Bay Area.

RIP my friend!

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