Sister Agnes Vera Hino, a Sister of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities
Teacher of 50 years had a Franciscan heart
Sister Agnes Vera Hino, a Sister of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities who served as a school teacher for more than five decades, died June 6 at St. Francis Convent in Manoa after a lengthy illness. She was 95 and a religious sister for 69 years.
An obituary released by the Sisters of St. Francis described the Hawaii-born woman of Japanese ancestry as possessing “a truly Franciscan heart, a devout spirituality which evolved from her Buddhist upbringing, a demure smile, and a penchant for organization and details.”
“As an educator,” it said, “she insisted that her students complete their lessons thoroughly and neatly, and she humbly credited the Holy Spirit for successfully guiding her students.”
“She impressed others with her trivia knowledge and her wise insights into religious life. In community discussions, she would listen thoughtfully, then utter pearls of wisdom.”
Sister Agnes Vera was born in Honolulu in 1923, one of eight children of Gunsuke and Fusano Hino. They named her Yaeko.
In a 2014 Hawaii Catholic Herald interview, Sister Agnes Vera said she learned responsibility and respect from her devout Buddhist parents.
“We prayed together, we ate together, we did things together,” she said of her family. “You see, that all becomes part of you. All of those little things make a difference.”
Yaeko enrolled at Saint Francis School in Manoa in her final years in high school, a decision made by her eldest brother after her parents had died.
“He felt we could have a better education in a private school,” she said. “He had his own family, but he put his brothers and sisters, each one of us, in a private school.”
At Saint Francis, Yaeko eagerly absorbed the Catholic faith from her classmates and teachers. She was baptized at Sacred Heart Church, Punahou, taking the Christian name Barbara. She wanted to take her newfound faith a step further and join the religious order of sisters who ran her school.
After graduating, she worked for several years to save enough money to buy a plane ticket to the Franciscan motherhouse in Syracuse. She joined the Franciscans in 1949 and was given the religious name Agnes Vera.
Sister Agnes Vera made her perpetual vows in 1954 at age 28. She earned a bachelor’s degree at Marywood College, Scranton, Pa., and later studied to be a teacher of English as a second language.
After a year doing catechetical work, Sister Agnes Vera taught for 25 years in elementary and secondary schools in upstate New York, and Lorain, Ohio. Returning to Hawaii in 1980, She served briefly as principal of St. Joseph Elementary School in Hilo and then for 32 years as a teacher at St. Francis School, Manoa. She retired in 2013.
During the final decade of her career, Sister Agnes Vera taught English as a second language classes. She also created her own “Fashions by Hino” on her many sewing machines.
Some of her students considered her “strict,” she said in 2014, but that was because she tried to impart more than facts and figures.
“It’s not just book work we learn here, it’s life skills,” she said. “Being responsible; being on time; being neat, not sloppy; no half-answers … You have to learn to think for yourself.”
Sister Agnes Vera especially wanted students to “realize how much God really loves us.”
“To me, if they can realize that, it’s worth all the education,” she said. “That’s what I received when I came here … I want to pass it on.”
As for her lifelong accomplishments as an educator, she sought little credit for herself.
“I’m just doing what God is asking me to do,” she said. “What’s so extraordinary about that?”
Sister Agnes Vera was predeceased by her parents and four brothers, Noboru, Hisashi, Shigeru, and Packard Hino. She is survived by one brother, George (Kay) Hino, two sisters, Michie Moto and Stella Tamanaha, and 13 nieces and nephews. The Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities also survive her.
Funeral services were scheduled for June 22 at St. Francis Convent followed by inurnment at Diamond Head Memorial Park.
