Damien Memorial School is a private

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

preparatory school for boys and girls in grades 6–12 in

Kalihi Kalihi is a neighborhood of Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu in Hawaiʻi, United States. Split by the Likelike Highway (Route 63), it is flanked by downtown Honolulu to the east and Mapunapuna, Moanalua and Salt Lake to the west. Kalihi is th ...

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, United States. Located in the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu The Catholic Diocese of Honolulu ( la, Diœcesis Honoluluensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church that comprises the entire U.S. state, state of Hawaii, Hawaii and the unincorporated Hawaiian Islands. T ...

, the school is sponsored by the

Congregation of Christian Brothers The Congregation of Christian Brothers ( la, Congregatio Fratrum Christianorum; abbreviated CFC) is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Blessed Edmund Rice. Their first school was opened in Waterford, Ireland, ...

and is accredited by the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was an organization providing School accreditation, accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary school, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, ...

History and origins

At the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu saw the need for a second Catholic school on Oahu. The new school was named after Saint

Damien de Veuster Father Damien or Saint Damien of Molokai, SS.CC. or Saint Damien De Veuster ( nl, Pater Damiaan or '; 3 January 1840 – 15 April 1889), born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium and member of the Congregation of the Sacr ...

, who devoted his life to caring for Hansen's Disease patients on Molokai during the 19th century. The Congregation of Christian Brothers, parents and students volunteered to turn the land - which included of

taro Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in Africa ...

patches and a good deal of uneven swampland - into a school campus because the company that started construction on Damien went bankrupt. Damien became coeducational beginning from the 2012–13 school year.

Athletics

Damien, in its 60 years of athletic competition, has primarily played within Division II. As recently as the 2021-2022 season, Damien's Varsity Boys Baseball Team had emerged as Division II State Champions, representing th
Interscholastic League of Honolulu
and winning the ILH their third consecutive state championship.

Damien Alma Mater

Damien Alma Mater Tender True and Bold Proudly in the Heavens Gleams thy Mauve and Gold Glory's mantle cloaks thee God our guide is nigh And our hearts forever love thee Damien High And our hearts forever praise thee Damien High!

Notable alumni

Frank De Lima Franklin Wilcox Napuakekaulike De Lima (born July 8, 1949) is an American comedian from Hawaii. Biography Frank De Lima is one of Hawai’i's most popular and beloved comedians. For over 40 years, this award-winning comic has been entertainin ...

, comedian *

Joe DeSa Joseph DeSa (July 27, 1959 – December 20, 1986) was a Major League Baseball first baseman. Drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 3rd round of the 1977 MLB amateur draft, DeSa made his Major League Baseball debut with the St. Louis Cardinal ...

, MLB first baseman *

Kealoha Pilares Kealoha Pilares (born February 20, 1988) is a former American football wide receiver. He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Professi ...

, NFL player *

Chris Truby Christopher John Truby (born December 9, 1973) is a third baseman who played some of his career in Major League Baseball, though most of his time was spent in various teams' minor league systems. Chris is a 1992 graduate of Damien Memorial High ...

, MLB third baseman *

Inoke Breckterfield Inoke Breckterfield e-NO-kay(born April 25, 1977) is an American football coach who is currently the defensive line coach at the University of Washington. He played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Toronto Argonauts (1999–2000) an ...

, University of Wisconsin defensive line coach *

Jacob Batalon Jacob Batalon (; born October 9, 1996) is an American actor. Batalon achieved international recognition playing Ned Leeds in five Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films, beginning with '' Spider-Man: Homecoming'' (2017). Cameos in '' Avenger ...

, actor
Dr. Arnold Laanui
former FBI Secret Agent and current President/CEO of Damien

References

Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu Private high schools in Honolulu Private middle schools in Hawaii Private schools in Honolulu Congregation of Christian Brothers secondary schools Catholic secondary schools in Hawaii Educational institutions established in 1962 1962 establishments in Hawaii {{hawaii-school-stub