Handley Fr Dennis
| Type of person | Individual |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | 1949 |
| Place of birth | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. |
| Principal occupation | Catholic Priest.First Principal of Xavier College. |
| Date of death | 2004 |
| Place of death | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. |
Handley Fr Dennis SDB.
( SDB = The Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB; also known as the Salesian Society or Salesian Order; officially named the Society of St Francis de Sales) is a Catholic religious institute of the Latin Church, founded in the late nineteenth century by Italian priest Saint John Bosco to help poor children during the Industrial Revolution.)
Dennis Handley was born in Melbourne on 13th September 1949. He received his secondary education at Salesian College, Chadstone, Victoria. In 1968, he entered the Salesian novitiate at Lysterfield and was ordained a priest on 10th June 1978. He served as rector, teacher, deputy principal and principal at Engadine in NSW, Sunbury and Ferntree Gully in Victoria and Port Pirie and Gawler in South Australia.
When Fr Dennis came to Gawler in 1994, he was presented with a dusty windswept field on the outskirts of Gawler and an office in the town itself. That windswept field now has many buildings and a large secondary school. In building the college, Fr Dennis made sure the Principal’s office was near the main students’ gathering area with an open door nearby. Students were free to drop in, and they did.
Sport was always important to Fr Dennis, so he made sure that the school facilities were available at the weekend. The local parish tennis team changed their name to the Xavier Saints with better courts. The netball team with the same name now had better facilities for their practice. Each Saturday, Fr Dennis supported the teams in their matches on the local Gawler courts. To protect the netball rings from vandalism these poles were removed late each Saturday at the end of play. Soon Fr Dennis became the regular pole carrier. Few at the courts ever realized their reliable worker was a priest or the principal of a local school.
Salesians’ term of office in a school is reviewed every few years. Thus, it was that at the end of 2003, he found he would soon be leaving the school and community he had come to know so well. Current and past teachers and staff had a farewell dinner for him. Fr Dennis allowed others there to see that he was heartbroken at having to leave the school he had founded. He even referred to Xavier as his baby.
Meanwhile, his fellow Salesians, with whom he lived, noticed that he was changing; forgetful at times which was most unlike him. They thought he was upset at leaving, so it was suggested he spend time with his brother who lived on the Gold Coast. There he was diagnosed with a highly aggressive brain tumour. At least it was an opportunity for his family to come together and spend time with him.
He did return to Gawler for a short time and made a determined effort to attend the College Assembly to present the Dux of College medal, aptly named in his honour, “The Fr Handley Medal.” He soon needed 24-hour care and was transferred to Melbourne, where he died on 4th March 2004.
We thank Pat Sheahan for this information.
Please <click here> to view photos of Father Dennis Handley.
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