Obituary: Seipp, Justin H.
Age 86
Justin moved to Liberty Lake, Washington in 1935 with his family.
He began school in Otis Orchards the following year.
He graduated from Our Lady of Lourdes Grade School in 1944.
Justin attended Gonzaga Preparatory School where he played basketball, ran track and was captain of the football team.
Justin served as the president of the class of 1948 and graduated as salutatorian.
He joined the Jesuits in 1948.
He attended a two-year spiritual training in Sheridan, Oregon from 1948 to 1950 and the following year worked at St Mary’s Mission near Omak.
He spent three years from 1953-1956 at Mt.
St. Michael’s, a monastery north of Spokane.
He received a licentiate in Philosophy and continued his studies in Latin and Greek.
From 1956 to 1959 Justin was assigned to teach Latin, Greek and Religion at Bellarmine Prep in Tacoma, WA.
He especially enjoyed coaching the freshman football and basketball teams at Bellarmine.
After taking time to complete his Master’s Degree at Santa Clara, Justin was ordained a Catholic Priest in the Jesuit Order and returned to Bellarmine Prep, as the school vice principal during the ‘64-‘65 school year then as principal from 1965 through 1970.
During his tenure as principal at Bellarmine Prep, the school flourished with a dramatic increase in student enrollment and quality.
Justin’s lifelong pursuit of social justice was in clear evidence during his time at Bellarmine.
He helped develop summer programs for disadvantaged youth and worked diligently to provide opportunities for minority youth in the Tacoma area.
He was one of the founding board members for the Tacoma Urban League, served on Tacoma’s Human Relations Commission, worked with the Hilltop Youth Center and the Catholic Interracial Council.
In 1970, he made sure that the school and any organization he worked with only did business with companies that participated in an equal opportunity survey and could demonstrate a professional commitment to employing people from all walks of life and promoting diversity.
He always was a visionary who believed that everyone deserved a fair opportunity.
Justin left Bellarmine to pursue a PhD in Education Administration at Fordham University in New York City.
During his two years there he decided to leave the Jesuits and marry Brianne E. Bell, a former nun.
They were married September 3, 1972 on Vashon Island in Washington.
From 1972 to 1994 Justin was the Director of Developmental Education and the Educational Opportunity Program at Duchess Community College in Poughkeepsie, New York.
With his assistance, thousands of students were able to find the support they needed to be successful in college.
Justin and Brianne were divorced in 1993, it was amicable and they remained good friends until her death.
During his retirement, Justin’s passion for social justice was channeled into his work as an Ombudsman for the elderly in Poughkeepsie.
Justin was preceded in death by his mother and father, Henry M. and Alice Seipp, and by 13 brothers and sisters.
He is survived by his sisters, Evelyn McAdams and Caroline Arnot and his brothers Robert Seipp and William Seipp.
He is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews and foster children Eduardo Rivera and Angela Rivera.
Memorial Services will be Tuesday, October 6, 2015 at 11:30am and will be conducted at St. Joseph Cemetery and Funeral Center Chapel, 17825 E. Trent Ave., Spokane Valley, WA with inurnment to follow at St. Joseph Cemetery.
Arrangements have been entrusted to: