Most Reverend R. Pierre DuMaine

August 2, 1931 - June 13, 2019

Roland Pierre DuMaine, son of Nolan Amidee DuMaine and Mary Eulalia Burch, was born in Paducah, Kentucky on August 2, 1931.

After attending Saint Mary’s Academy in Paducah and Holy Family School in Glendale, California, he entered Saint Joseph’s College Seminary, Mountain View, and Saint Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park.

Ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Francisco on June 15, 1957, Father DuMaine served as assistant pastor at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Belmont before he was assigned to graduate studies at the Catholic University of America, from 1958-1961. After receiving a doctoral degree in Education, he served on the faculty of Catholic University and Serra High School in San Mateo, was Archdiocesan Assistant Superintendent of Schools and Superintendent from 1965 until 1978, having been named a Prelate of Honor of his Holiness (Monsignor) in 1972. Bishop DuMaine was ordained Auxiliary Bishop of San Francisco on June 29, 1978, serving in that capacity until March 18, 1981, when he became the Founding Bishop of the Diocese of San Jose.

Amidst great difficulties, Bishop DuMaine succeeded in the largest privately funded renewal project of downtown San Jose: the restoration of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph. These efforts insured that the Cathedral Basilica survived the 1989 earthquake and became what it is to this very day: the crown jewel of downtown San Jose.

On November 27, 1999, the Holy See accepted the bishop’s request for retirement. After retirement, he served as visiting professor at both Santa Clara University and Stanford University.

Bishop DuMaine will long be remembered for his dedication to the teachings and principles put forth by the Second Vatican Council. Among these were the call to holiness that is extended to all the baptized, the inclusion of lay and religious women and men in decision-making positions within the Church, and a commitment to Catholic Education and Formation in all of its forms.

A visionary who recognized the significant role of technology in social communications and the Church’s mission of evangelization, Bishop DuMaine served as chair of the United States Bishops’ Committee on Communications, as a member of the Pontifical Commission on Social Communications, and as a director and longtime supporter of the Catholic Television Network (CTN), a closed-circuit network serving Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of San Francisco and the dioceses of San Jose and Oakland.

He was a man of great intelligence and wit and will long be missed by his family and by his many friends and collaborators.

The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Joseph in San Jose on Thursday, June 27, at 10:00 am.

Donations in Bishop DuMaine’s memory may be made to the Priests’ Retirement Fund or the Catholic School Scholarship Fund, both in care of The Diocese of San Jose, 1150 North First Street, Suite 100, San Jose, CA 95112-4966.