Scott Luyster ’17

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Mr. John Hosty has been a teacher at Strake Jesuit for 50 years. He has coached basketball and football, taught Spanish, seen the ups and downs of Sharpestown, and has been one of the most respected members of our faculty. I interviewed Mr. Hosty myself to find out his story.

It was the Vietnam War era when Strake Jesuit hired Mr. Hosty in 1966, followed by other Strake Jesuit legends Mr. Nevle in 1967 and Mr. Gilbert in 1968, despite their all being of legal age to be drafted into service. All three avoided the draft but gave decades of distinguished service to Jesuit.

Mr. Hosty said, “That’s how I started teaching here, and I liked it more and more, and it worked out fine for my family and it worked out fine for me. That’s how I stayed here.” Mr. Hosty’s son attended Strake Jesuit.

When Mr. Hosty began here, there were a little more than 300 students. Most of the teachers were Jesuit priests or Jesuit seminarians. There were a few little roads that connected Jesuit with the city of Houston. Surrounding the school, Mr. Hosty said, “There were fields of crops and farms.” He said that everything from the choices of classes to the facilities have changed remarkably, noting, “The quality I think has just gotten better, and it’s progressed all along.”

He described the new suburb of Sharpestown during his early years as “booming.” He remembers driving by Frank Sharp’s bank and being able to see him working through the first-story windows. That was before the bank’s closure from a stock scandal nearly put an end to Strake Jesuit, which had invested heavily in the bank’s stock.

Mr. Hosty was young when he started working at Strake Jesuit, and he fondly looks back at all the years and all of the different people that came through with him. He said, “We all kinda grew up with each other and matured with each other.” Of course, he remembers many other teachers, priests, and faculty members whom he met upon his path here at Strake Jesuit. He said, “I think I get a little nostalgic when I think back over 50 years.”

Mr. Hosty emphasizes he could only thank God for the opportunity has given him to be able to work here at Jesuit. When he was hired he was dedicated, familiar with the brotherhood aspect of Strake Jesuit, and willing to work for the Jesuit community. He has been a pillar here and will never be forgotten.