OBITUARY
Dominican Sister Mary Bernardine Perez served as educator in Hawaii for 30 years
Hawaii Catholic Herald
As quietly as she lived, Dominican Sister of the Holy Rosary Mary Bernardine Perez died on March 8 in serene surroundings in Waianae, just two days shy of her 72nd birthday and a couple of months away from her much anticipated golden jubilee of religious profession.
She lived in Hawaii for nearly 30 years over two assignments, working as a school teacher on three islands and also as a principal and congregational superior. She was one of the first of many religious sisters from the Philippines to be assigned to missionary work in Hawaii’s Catholic schools.
Her wake is 7 p.m., March 19, at the Dominican Center Hawaii in Waipio, and her funeral Mass is 10 a.m., March 20, also at the Dominican Center.
Sister Bernardine was born in Pototan, Iloilo, in the Philippines in 1938. At age 19, she entered the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines. Twelve years later she was chosen for the faraway mission field of Hawaii.
In search for religious orders to staff the islands’ Catholic schools, then Bishop James J. Sweeney turned to the Philippines and to the Dominican Sisters. His successor, Bishop John J. Scanlan renewed the invitation and in 1969 Sister Bernardine began teaching at St. Elizabeth School in Aiea.
This first assignment was followed by later ones on Maui at St. Joseph School in Makawao and on Kauai at St. Catherine’s School in Kapaa. In addition to being an elementary school teacher, Sister Bernardine at different times also served as superior of her congregation here and as school principal.
She was known for her loving, caring and kind-hearted ways, as well as her gift for compassionate listening.
In 1991, Sister Bernardine was assigned to St. Charles School in San Francisco’s Mission District. There she continued to spread her mission wings, expanding beyond the classroom to become trained as a member of NERT (National Emergency Response Team) and ready for civil service in the case of an emergency.
It was in San Francisco that she applied for and was granted U.S. citizenship.
Sister Bernardine returned to Hawaii in 2003 to teach at St. John the Baptist School in Kalihi. When health challenges arose she was assigned to the Dominican Center in Waipio and finally to the Dominican’s House of Aloha in Waianae.
Her passion for life and the sharing of her faith did not stop with her medically-required retirement. She became involved with the Dominican Laity begun at Sacred Hearts Church in Waianae. She continued to share her enthusiasm for sports — watching volleyball, basketball, and especially football on TV.
And because she loved to cook, she continued to do so in her quiet and unassuming way.
Sister Bernardine is survived by four brothers, Francisco, Lucio, Florencio and Abraham; and two sisters, Inez and Cecilia, all of the Philippines.