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The Life of Father Hess
Monday, 25 December 2006

George Hess
George Hess
The following tribute to Father Hess has been taken from the book, One Man's Dream - A Million Kids' Beneficence, compiled and published by Rajat Bhatia along with a few of his other schoolmates from De Nobili School, FRI, Dhanbad. The proceeds from the sale of this book will be used to help needy children. Click on the link above for more about the book and how to purchase it.

The Early Life of Fr. Hess

Father Hess was born on 10 October, 1919 in Bayonne, New Jersey to David and Julia Hess. His Father, was a self-made civil engineer and a consultant to JP Morgan. David Hess was also a close friend of Mr. Rayens, the Chairman of AT&T and in the good old days, the young George Hess would visit the estate of Mr. Rayens on Long Island with his parents. It was this privileged lifestyle that Father Hess gave up to make the journey to Bihar as a Jesuit in 1952.

With parents and sister in 1937
With parents and sister in 1937
David Hess was a partner in a corporation manufacturing electric light bulbs and also radio valves. That went down the drain in the Great Depression. He returned to his civil engineering profession after that in the 1930’s. Julia Hess, the mother of Father Hess, worked in the U.S. Army Engineer Corps in addition to raising the young George Hess and his sister Marie. Father Hess mentioned to me that although he was the only son, his parents had no objection to his leaving home to join the Jesuits and go to work for the benefit of others in India, which in the 1950s was quite a distant land for anyone in America.

In this family picture above, taken in 1937, the young George Hess is in the upper right hand of the picture. He is seen at the age of eighteen, with his Father David, Mother Julia and sister Marie. The photo was taken as a sort of memento before he joined the Jesuit Order.

Father Hess has a nephew, John Rulien and four nieces, Kathleen Rulien, Lisa (Rulien) Kennedy, Judith (Rulien) Alverson and Janet Rulien, who are all residents of California. They went to California in 1958 as their father, who was an aeronautical engineer, moved there as part of his career in the aerospace industry.

A Tribute to Father George A. Hess, S.J. 

When, Nobilians meet, one of the first things they ask is “How is Father Hess”. That sums up the love, respect and adoration which all Nobilians have for Father George A. Hess. A Nobilian once wrote to me saying that a visit to meet Father Hess is like a pilgrimage. Nothing can be more true.

With Mother Teresa
With Mother Teresa
Father Hess embodies the true qualities of a wonderful human being — the integrity of a gentleman, the self sacrifice of a compassionate man, the discipline and quest for knowledge of a scientist, the athleticism of a tennis player and the hard work of a diligent person. He came to India in 1952 at the age of 32 at a time when India had just become independent from colonial rule in 1947. Today, 53 years later, Father Hess has lived longer in India than most Indians and continues to do yeoman work for our country and its people. During his seventeen long years as the Principal, Father Hess built De Nobili School into one of the finest educational institutions in India. The quality of education at De Nobili School, especially in the sciences, is borne out by the numerous engineers, doctors, army officers, air force pilots and business executives that have passed through the hallowed portals of De Nobili School.

After his initial schooling at the Gonzaga College High School, in the USA, from where he graduated in 1937, Father Hess went onto study Physics and Philosophy at Georgetown University. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1943. He subsequently earned an L.Phil. From Woodstock College, Maryland in 1944 and a Master of Arts degree in Teaching from the same institution in 1945. In 1976, Father Hess graduated with a Master of Arts degree in Education from Stanford University. He was honored with a Doctor of Humane Letters (Honorary degree) by Gonzaga College in 1987.

With the Pope John Paul II
With the Pope John Paul II
The life of Father Hess is worthy of a book by itself. He is a living legend in India and not just in De Nobili School. A book on De Nobili School would be incomplete without a chapter that was dedicated to a gentleman and a scholar, who dedicated his life to serving the children of India. Most people travel to the United States from India in search of their destinies, guided by the opportunities to study, earn more money and fulfill their career aspirations. Very few travel in the opposite direction. Father Hess and the other Jesuit scholars and priests who built De Nobili School in the coalfields of India, were one such group of noblemen whose calling in life was to serve other people and build a better future for children in a far away land.

The selfless dedication of Father Hess to promoting education in India is borne out by the fact that in 1970, there was just one teacher at De Nobili School who had a Bachelors degree in Education and that was the Honorable Mr. Manik Midde. When Father Hess left De Nobili School in 1979, almost all our 80 teachers had received formal training in education and had graduated from the Loyola College of Education in Jamshedpur.

Father Hess was the Principal of De Nobili School from 1963 to 1979. Earlier he served as the Principal of Loyola School, Jamshedpur. After leaving De Nobili School, Father Hess spent 17 years as the Principal of the Loyola College of Education in Jamshedpur from 1979 to 1996. He simultaneously served as a Professor of Communications at the Xavier Labor Relations Institute (XLRI), Jamshedpur which is one of India’s premier business schools. In 1996, Father Hess moved to Bhubaneshwar where he was a Professor of Communications at the Xavier Institute of Management until 2001. Today, he is the Founder-Director of the Loyola Communications Center in Bhubaneshwar and despite his being 86 years old, he is tireless in his efforts to promote education in India, build new hospitals and schools and spread goodwill, happiness and love around him.

On his desk.
On his desk.
Father Hess became a Jesuit in 1937. Several years before that he had weighed many professions including engineering, music, acting and decided upon aspiring to become a priest. The Jesuits with whom he came into close contact with in high school lead to his requesting permission to join them. He chose to come to India in 1952 because Jesuits from the Province which he joined were assigned to India rather than to any other country. It was the beginning of a memorable joumey that would eventually lead to Father Hess making India his own home.

In his own words “My reason for volunteering was that without doing so I would be shutting the door on a primary aspect of being a Jesuit, that of universal availability. When offered a choice between that and doctoral studies in Physics for which I showed high aptitude I pointed out that volunteering precluded the making of a choice.”

With visiting mother and aunt at Loyola in 1960
With visiting mother and aunt at Loyola in 1960
Father Hess went to Stanford University in 1975 and studied Education in order to fit himself more professionally for writing in that field, especially when younger men would take over the positions which he had held. He has some wonderful memories of De Nobili School. Some of his favorite memories of De Nobili are of being able to take part in so many pioneering developments:

  • constructing new buildings;
  • developing the branch school system, unique in the Jesuit Order;
  • developing the Blind School (an activity generally unknown to teachers and students.)
  • and above all in being able to take a small part in the development of students, boys and girls, into mature independent minded, socially responsible adults.

While teaching Physics, Father Hess had daily demonstrations as far as possible. According to him “An axiom of science demonstrations is to test them before class. Lacking time to do this I violated the axiom leading to frequent failures in the demonstrations. I found that to be the best way to teach!! The whole class became involved in analyzing the failure. They also experienced the fact that scientific experiments often fail and in doing so may contribute to new knowledge. (Of course, you have to have already established your competence to do this.)”

The pictures on the next few pages tell the story of a truly wonderful man who dedicated his life for the good of others.

Life of Father Hess after De Nobili 

Though Father Hess is best known for his work at De Nobili School, he continued to perform yeoman service to the cause of education in India even after leaving De Nobili.

Loyola Collge of Education, Jamshedpur
Loyola Collge of Education, Jamshedpur
In 1979, he left De Nobili to return to the scenic city of Jamshedpur to become the Principal of the Loyola College of Education.

The Loyola College of Education trained teachers in the art as well as science of educating children. Many teachers in India have been trained there in the field of education.

The picture on the right is an aerial photograph of the Loyola College, set amidst a backdrop of rolling hills.

When I met Father Hess in 1999 for the first time since I left De Nobili School, he was a Professor of Communications at the Xavier Institute of Irv Being 80 years old at that time, he was unable to hold a cup of tea or a “samosa” — an Indian delicacy, steadily in his hand. His hands would shake as he tried to sip a cup of tea or eat the samosa. Despite all this Father Hess was indefatigable in his endeavor to establish both the Loyola School and the Loyola Hospital in Bhubaneshwar. He was full of enthusiasm as he took me around to visit the 12 acres of land that had been given by the Chief Minister of Orissa for the Loyola School in Bhubaneshwar. Old Jesuits never die, they simply keep marching on!!!!

Loyola Hospital, Bhuvaneshwar in its 1st Phase
Loyola Hospital, Bhuvaneshwar in its 1st Phase
After Maryland, Dhanbad and Jamshedpur, the next place where Father Hess spent a significant part of his life was Bhubaneshwar in the eastern Indian state of Orissa. In Bhubaneshwar, Father Hess served as a Professor of Communications at the Xavier Institute of Management, one of the top-ten management schools in India While, teaching at the Xavier Institute, Father Hess channeled his energies into the creation of The Loyola Hospital in Bhubaneshwar. This hospital was founded in 1997 and is a testimony to the selfless sacrifice and dedication of Father Hess towards the welfare of other people despite his advanced age. The photo above shows Father Hess in his early eighties still working on building new institutions — this one being the Loyola Hospital in Bhubaneshwar.

In Baltimore, Chicago and San Diego 

At the Jesuit Seminary in Baltimore
At the Jesuit Seminary in Baltimore
In the year 2005, Father Hess visited the United States and spent about three months there. He first visited Chicago, followed by San Diego and then Baltimore. Before returning to India, he again spent some time in San Diego and Chicago. During this period a number of Nobilians in the Mid-West, the East Coast and the West Coast called upon Father Hess to meet him personally. Everyone, expressed their gratitude for his brilliant work in India and fondly remembered their days at De Nobili School. Professor Ramesh Rao of the University of California, San Diego organized a get together of Nobilians on the West Coast. He also showed Father Hess around the new research building for which he had received a multi-million dollar grant. On the East Coast, Deven Verma visited Father Hess. In the Mid West, quite a few Nobilians called upon Father Hess when he was staying with Mr. Joseph Thomas.

Here are some pictures taken during the recent visit of Father Hess to the country where he grew up.

Milestones in the Life of Fr. George Hess

October 10, 1919 Born in Bayonne, New Jersey, U.S.A.
1937 Entered Society of Jesus
1937 High School, Gonzaga College High School, U.S.A.
1943 B.Sc. (Physics), Georgetown University, U.S.A.
1944 L.Phil. Woodstock College, U.S.A.
1945 M.A. (Teaching), Woodstock College, U.S.A.
1945 - 1947 Teacher, Loyola High School, Baltimore, U.S.A.
1950 Ordained Jesuit Priest
1951 S.T.B. Woodstock College, U.S.A.
1952 Missioned To India
1953 - 1962 Principal, Loyola School, Jamshedpur
1958 - 1979 Founder-Secretary of Association of Schools for the I.S.C.
1961 - 1983 Member of The Council for The Indian School Certificate Exams
1963 - 1979 Principal, De Nobili School, Dhanbad
1963 -1979 Secretary, Dhanbad Blind Relief Society
1964 - Present Founder- Member, SIGNIS
1964 -1966 President of Lions Club of Dhanbad
1975 - 1979 Founding of The De Nobili Branch Schools
1976 M.A. (Ed.), Stanford University, U.S.A.
1979 - 1996 Principal, Loyola College Of Education, Jamshedpur
1981 - 1985 Professor of Communications Xavier Labor Relations Institute, Jamshedpur
1987 Doctor of Humane Letters (Honorary Degree), Gonzaga College, U.S.A.
1996-2001 Professor of Communications Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneshwar
1997- Founding of Loyola Hospital, Bhubaneshwar
1997- Contracting with Government of Orissa for Loyola School on 12 Acres Of Prime Land
1999 Jury for Derozio Award, Council For I.C.S.E.
2000 Laying of Foundation Stone, Loyola School, by Chief Minister of Orissa
2002 - Present Established Loyola Center for Communication & Culture, Bhubaneshwar
2002 - Present Member Photomission, Inc., U.S.A.
2002 - Present Consultant in Education 
2003 - Date Founder-Director, Loyola Communications Cente

The author, Rajat Bhatia, studied at De Nobili School from 1975 (Class V) to 1979 (beginning of Class X). He was later educated at La Martiniere for Boys, Kolkata, St. Stephen's College, Delhi, the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and Columbia University, New York City.  Currently he lives in Delray Beach, Florida with his wife Diana who hails from Odessa, Ukraine. It was his meeting with Father Hess in 1999, almost 20 years after he left De Nobili School, that inspired him to write the book.

 
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