In Memoriam: John J. Delaney ‘50

If ever there was a shining example of how a school influences the life of an individual, and the impact that grateful individual has on a school in return, that was John J. Delaney, Class of 1950, who passed away earlier this week. Upon receiving the sad news, Father Planning referred to John as “Mr. Gonzaga.” Few would argue that distinction of one of Gonzaga’s most devoted sons.

Though John Delaney graduated from Gonzaga in 1950, it could be said that he never left Eye Street. Almost immediately, he became deeply involved in Alumni Association activities and would eventually serve as that organization’s President. In the late 1960’s after social unrest left parts of Washington, D.C. in ashes, the Jesuits of the Maryland Province considered closing Gonzaga, or moving it to a suburban location. Determined that Gonzaga remain open and on Eye Street, John Delaney joined a small and bold coalition of alumni that went to Baltimore to meet with the Jesuit Provincial and implore him not to close Gonzaga. John would continue to play a key role in defining Gonzaga’s return to glory for the next fifty years.

John and his wife, Gloria, sent three sons to Gonzaga, Tom ’75, John, Jr. ’76 and Jim ’80. John joined the Fathers Club and served as its President. He served three terms on the Gonzaga Board of Directors, including being Board Chair, and would for the ensuing decades remain a trusted advisor to Gonzaga Presidents, especially regarding the school’s many real estate concerns. A noted attorney for over fifty years, John gave so many pro-bono legal hours that people wondered was he really employed by the firm of Linowes & Blocher, or Gonzaga?

Deservedly, John was honored by Gonzaga in just about every way the school could show its gratitude. He was inducted into Alumni Association Theater Hall of Fame, named the Alumni Association Man of the Year and received the school’s St. Aloysius Medal.

In 1985, John was the school’s first alumnus to be asked to deliver the Kohlmann Address at graduation. Here's how John concluded his remarks:

“In the second verse of the Alma Mater there is an exhortation to march on through the centuries and reach ever on unto eternity. Today, Gonzaga asks your help in fulfilling that mission. In a few moments when you receive your diplomas will you be merely graduating from Gonzaga or leaving it for good? When you sing the Alma Mater for the last time as a student and walk out of this church, will you be walking away from the life of this school or will you be walking beside it on its long march into eternity?”

Mr. Gonzaga himself has walked into eternity with a forever grateful Gonzaga at his side.
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