James “Jimmy” deSouza was born on December 11, 1925, in Karachi, Pakistan, and died on January 28, 2016.
He was educated at St Patrick’s High School, Karachi.
James received his religious training at the Papal Seminary, Kandy, Sri Lanka, which he entered in 1944 and was ordained a priest of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi on August 24, 1951.
After that, James taught for a while in St Paul’s English High School, and then in St. Anthony’s School.
Then, he was appointed Principal of St. John Vianney’s School for many years.
He was also a pastor to the small Bengali-speaking community in Karachi from 1963–1973.
DeSouza was also involved with their repatriation to Bangladesh in 1973, working with the ICRC and UNHCR.
Father DeSouza taught at St Patrick’s High School, where he recruited students to read to the blind at the Ida Rieu School.
Jimmy was appointed Rector of the St. Pius X Minor Seminary in Karachi in 1974.
Before that, he had been the first Chaplain of the Monastery of the Angels.
After becoming the Rector of the Seminary, he used to send his Seminarians to help the sisters whenever they had some challenging work like cleaning of the Retreat House, a special planting project in the garden, or other heavy jobs.
The sisters, then, supplied them with home – made jam, bakery goods, and fruits and vegetables from their garden.
From 1995 to 2000, St. Patrick’s Cathedral’s 40th parish priest was James “Jimmy” deSouza.
One of his well-known achievements was in renovating the cathedral building during 1998-1999 with funds from parishioners, former parishioners and well-wishers in Karachi and abroad.
He celebrated the Golden Jubilee of his priesthood, in 2001.
Father James was parish priest of St. Lawrence’s Church, Karachi in 2006-2007.
James celebrated the 60th anniversary of his ordination on August 24, 2011, with Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
The Mass was concelebrated by the Archbishop and 34 of the diocesan priests and followed by a Reception for him.
James “Jimmy” deSouza passed away at 90 yrs old.