No better colleague

Over the past weeks this column has focused on the planning principles that underpin our diocesan Road Map for Pastoral, Program, and Facility Needs 2008-2013. A driving force behind this document was Thomas Papandrew, who passed away on May 16. As the Director of Planning for our diocese, he helped design and carry out the process that translated the idea of a diocesan strategic plan into a reality. Tom chaired the diocesan planning committee and, along with Father Marc Alexander, has been a co-chair of our effort to move the implementation process forward. In this column I’d like to share a few thoughts about Tom and how much he has meant to me and our church.

The opportunity to know and work with Tom Papandrew has been a gift. One could not ask for a better colleague — intelligent, hard working, and generous in his support of others. Tom made people around him comfortable and brought out the best in them. As he dealt with his illness over the last few months, our time together became more limited and I missed having time to benefit from Tom’s wisdom.

I first got to know Tom when I worked on a small planning group for the Manoa-Punahou Catholic Community. One accomplishment of this group was the development of a position description for someone to assist the pastor with the administrative duties needed to make two clustered parishes run smoothly. Tom agreed to take this position and he worked tirelessly on behalf of our Catholic community. No job was too menial for him, and all tasks could be done. It was just a matter of planning, organizing, pitching in, and getting the work done.

Among Tom’s many gifts was the fact that he was a fun, happy person with a delightful sense of humor. He enjoyed whispering to me as he was lugging chairs up the aisle for some special service at Sacred Heart, “You know, Colleen, this task was not in my position description.”

More recently, as we worked together to translate the findings of his research and the results of the 66 parish visits made by him and Father Marc into a planning document, I found that Tom could turn great complexity into good common sense — a skill few have. He would turn the conversation to the issues that really mattered and make our work that much better. It took the commitment and hard work of a lot of people to produce the diocesan Road Map for the future, but few contributed more than Tom Papandrew.

As one got to know Tom, it became clear that his faith was at the center of his life. He was a holy man. About a year ago he talked to me about his plan to pursue a degree in theology. I was in awe. We’re about the same age; I recently retired and have been happy to put many years in an educational setting behind me. Here he was, excited (some would say “jazzed”) about the prospect of going to the Mainland to pursue an advanced degree in theology.

And only someone with Tom’s deep faith could reflect, as he did just a week ago, on his battle with illness as a positive experience. Tom’s faith formed his life, and there can be no doubt that the angels led him into Paradise and our Lord was there to greet him when he arrived.

When you put all of his qualities together, it is easy to see why Tom Papandrew was a successful architect, a leader in our church, and a loving and caring husband, dad, and grandparent. My heart aches for those affected deeply by his passing — his wife Willa, his family and many friends, and our church. His life was truly a “Witness to Jesus.”