TOM DINELL Obituary

TOM DINELL Tom Dinell, beloved husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, uncle, educator, and longtime Honolulu resident, died peacefully at home on December 9, 2025. Born March 8, 1928, in New York City, Tom earned degrees from Brown University and the University of Michigan and completed a fellowship at Harvard University's Graduate School of Public Administration. After Army service, he consulted with state and county governments and in 1957 helped establish the first administrative budget for the Territory of Hawaii. He later served as Director of the State Legislative Reference Bureau. At the University of Hawaii at Manoa, he founded the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, chairing it for more than 20 years. From 1988 to 1996 he directed Catholic Charities Hawaii. At age 88, he founded Trees for Honolulu's Future. Tom is remembered for his kindness, steady presence, and quiet ability to inspire by example. He is preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Connie (Matheis) Dinell; his sister, Judy Nan (Dinell) Hacohen; and his granddaughters, Alexandra Dinell and Sarah Dinell. He is survived by his wife, Kristi; children Margaret Chester (Robert), Helen Neff (Bill), David Dinell (Nancy), Mark Dinell (Brenda), Peter Dinell (Kim), Jean Dinell (Randy Huybers), Malia Lehman (John), and Daniel Dinell (Lynnette); and by grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, relatives, and friends in Hawaii and around the world. A Celebration of Life will be held at the UH Newman Center on Saturday, February 28, at 10:30 a.m. Reception to follow. Donations may be made to Trees for Honolulu's Future (treesforhonolulu.org) or the University of HawaiiDURP. For more on Tom's life: hawaiianmemorialparkmortuary.com/obituaries/tom-dinell/obituary