Fr. Joseph F. Downey, SJ, educator, editor and writer, died Oct. 20 at Colombiere Center in Clarkston. He was 94.

A native of Lima, Ohio, Fr. Downey was born Oct. 16, 1916 to Thomas and Anna Downey. Following his freshman year at Xavier University in Cincinnati, he entered the Jesuits in 1935 at the Milford Novitiate in Milford, Ohio.

During his Jesuit formation, Fr. Downey studied philosophy at the former West Baden College in Indiana (1939–1942), taught at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati (1942–1944), earned a master’s degree in English from Loyola University, Chicago (1946), and completed his theology studies at West Baden College (1949).

He was ordained June 16, 1948, and went on to earn a master’s degree in education from Loyola University, Chicago (1951), where he also taught part-time.

For more than a decade, Fr. Downey served in higher education as an administrator and professor. He got his start in 1951 at the University of Detroit (now University of Detroit Mercy) as assistant dean of arts and sciences and professor (1951–1953). In 1953 he joined the faculty of St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Ill., where he also served as registrar until 1958.

That same year he was named Dean of Arts and Sciences at John Carroll University in Cleveland. “Many of Fr. Joe Downey’s co-workers have commented that, throughout their lives, Joe always modeled to them the kind of enthusiasm for working to establish God’s Kingdom that St. Ignatius talked of as the magis, the greater, as in ad majorem Dei gloriam,” says Fr. James Riley, SJ, a friend and colleague of Fr. Downey. “Whether as college students, retreatants, or readers, Joe always happily challenged people to do more and learn more.”

In 1962, Fr. Downey was assigned as socius for the Detroit Province of the Jesuits (now joined with the Chicago Province).

“When Fr. John McGrail, SJ, became the first provincial for the Province of Detroit, he named Joe Downey as his socius, or right-hand man,” explains friend and colleague Fr. Walter Farrell, SJ. “When I became provincial in 1965, I found Joe to be a boon companion in the office. He was a talented man. I’d like to remember Joe best, however, as a welcoming and warm person, a diligent worker, and one who knew what it meant to be a Jesuit and was willing to tell the world about it,” Fr. Farrell adds.

At the end of his tenure as socius in 1969, Fr. Downey moved to New York City and used his gifts in a new way as editor of America Magazine, where he remained until 1973.

Fr. Downey left New York for Clinton, Ohio, where he served as superior and director of Loyola of the Lakes Retreat House from 1974 to 1985.

For the next 20 years, Fr. Downey made his home in Chicago and put his literary talents to use at Loyola Press (1986–2004), then as editorial director of Trade Books (1989–1994), and finally as editorial consultant (1994–2004).

When he moved to Colombiere Center in Clarkston in 2004, Fr. Downey devoted his time to writing and to praying for the Church and the society. In the final years of his life he completed 10 books on spirituality, including “Searching for the Christian End-Person: An Inside Story”, “When God Tells the Story Back to Us: Faith for the Senior Years,” and “The Spiritual Way: A Guide for Catholic Laypeople.”

Fr. Downey is survived by his brothers, Thomas, John, and Bernard; and a sister, Dorothy (Edward) Mohler; as well as many nieces and nephews.

A funeral Mass wase celebrated Oct. 23 at Colombiere Chapel, Clarkston. Burial was in Colombiere Cemetery.

Memorials to Jesuit International Missions or the Jesuit Partnership, 2050 N. Clark St., Chicago, Ill. 60614 or online at www.jesuits-chgdet.org.