Fr. John called to serve in Half Moon Bay
March 2, 2020
Father John Jimenez, a beloved figure at Archbishop Riordan High School, left the Riordan community last month. During his time at Riordan, he made an impact on the students and faculty.
Diego Mijares ’20 said, “He was a great listener. He set aside time to help those in need. Overall, he is a great person and I will never forget the things he has done for Riordan.”
Campus Ministry Director Alex Datoc ’87 added, “Father John has made a huge impact because he built relationships by going to the MLCs. He enjoyed going up to retreats and seeing the young men. He helped with the sacramental program, which baptized and confirmed 15 students and their families. He really bought into the Marianist charism and the characteristics of our education. He really loved working here at Archbishop Riordan.”
Father John first came to Riordan in July of 2017, while assisting on some of the Campus Ministry retreats. Prior to Riordan, he was a pastor for St. Charles, where he came in contact with several Riordan graduates, who helped the school with sports and music. Through his encounter with former Riordan students, he knew that Riordan would be a great place to continue his mission.
“I knew Riordan was a great place, and I had hoped to be able to combine the two,” he said.
He also helped out with the activities in Campus Ministry as well as teaching freshman and sophomore religion, and occasionally math.
“I enjoyed it when students called me ‘coach,’ for teaching in a classroom. It is really like practice for ‘The Big Game of Life,’ and I realized that the Marianist way is a great way of forming young men to bring good to society.”
Fr. John now looks forward to continuing his mission in Half Moon Bay. However, there are certain aspects that he will miss at Riordan.
“What I will miss most about being at Riordan is the Marianist Spirit, which has manifested in the generosity of the faculty, staff, and students in so many great things that they are doing.”
In the near future, he is looking forward to still being involved at Riordan,andinthelongterm,he plans on going to another mission to Sudan and Ecuador, where he knows some priests and those who need help.
Marjorie Cenina • Mar 3, 2020 at 10:52 pm
Our family will miss seeing Father Jimenez at Riordan. He baptized our son Josh Cenina (2022) when he was a baby at Our Lady of Visitacion Church. He was the associate pastor at OLV when Father Tom Seagrave was the priest there who also baptized our daughter. Father Jimenez makes Riordan feel like home.