Charles Hoonan

We were blessed to have Brother Dennis Goodman as a friend and mentor for 37 years.

We engaged in frequent correspondence whereby I would send him clippings, booklets and commentary on the Spanish in California and other historic references. In turn he sent me many little known facts about the Irish in California and other Christian Brothers known as the Christian Brothers of Ireland.

With Moraga moving toward incorporation, the leaders of the campaign asked Bro. Dennis to search for a suitable town crest. One day he asked me to meet with him. During lunch he looked a bit worried. "Well," he said, "I looked up the Spanish Moragan's ' Coat of arms in Spain. I found their crest was a Spaniard beheading a Moor. The name came as 'Aga,' Spanish for head and Mor for 'Moor'. Something that gruesome won't do."

In keeping with his gentle nature, he developed the Moraga coat of arms as an oak. It remains Moraga's crest.

Old timers will recall Brother Dennis' mule. A friend gave it to him so the mule could dine in the grassy field near the baseball diamond. Each Sunday after church, we would drive to the campus carrying sugar cubes and carrots. Each of our four boys would feed this very tame, tame fellow. Some people said this was the same mule that Charley Finlay had as the Oakland A's mascot. It's my understanding this was not Charley's pet. In time campus expansion took over the mule's range forcing Brother Dennis to find a new home. Brother Dennis gave him to a friend in the Mother Lode country. The story had a sad ending. During the bow and arrow hunting season, a very confused archer shot and killed the mule after mistaking him for a deer.

We shall greatly miss this kindly gentleman. Moraga is far richer for having Brother Dennis as our friend, our historian and our teacher.

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