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 let ...

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

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 isla ...

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 state of Hawaii and the unincorporated Hawaiian Islands. The Diocese of H ...

, the school is sponsored by the Congregation of Christian Brothers and is accredited by the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was an organization providing accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Sam ...

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, 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, 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 Afri ...

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, comedian * Joe DeSa, MLB first baseman * Kealoha Pilares, NFL player * Chris Truby, MLB third baseman * Inoke Breckterfield, University of Wisconsin defensive line coach * Jacob Batalon, 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