Father David Bauer was an hockey player, builder, and hockey pioneer who later was ordained in 1953 as a Catholic priest in the Congregation of St. Basil. Believed the virtues of hockey and education could better equip young people for success in life. Pioneered the concept of a National Team of top amateurs from across Canada in hockey originally based at UBC.

Father Bauer, Chaplin at St. Marks College at UBC from 1961 until 1988, was described by the Canadian press as, “The kindly Roman Catholic priest who brought a reluctant Canadian hockey fraternity into the modern age of international play with his concept of a national team” was the pioneer of the notion that education and hockey could go hand in hand, a philosophy that has endured in the institutions and the young men he influenced.

Bauer felt “if you can improve the boy as a person through virtues of hockey – courage, judgement, prudence, fortitude, teamwork and fair play he will improve as a hockey player. Father Bauer twice won the championship title of Canadian Junior ice hockey: as a player in 1944 with Oshawa and in 1961 as a coach and teacher with St. Mike’s College developing many players who went on to the Toronto Maple Leafs including Frank Mahovlich and Dave Keon.

In 1961 he began building a National Team and represented his country with this team made up of amateurs and former junior stars at the Olympic Winter Games 1964 in Innsbruck, finishing fourth. He guided Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships in 1964 (bronze medal), 1966 (bronze medal) and 1967 (bronze medal) and at the Olympic Winter Games in 1968 in Grenoble as manager when Jackie McLeod coached the team (bronze medal).

Between 1969 and 1979, Canada withdrew from International Hockey, which damaged the program for much of the 1970’s return to the Olympics at Lake Placid in 1980, Bauer worked as the squad’s managing director.

In the years just before his passing in 1988, Father Bauer was accorded a multitude of honours reflecting his importance to the game. These include the Order of Canada in (1967) the Sports Hall of Fame in (1967), Waterloo County Hall of Fame in (1972).

Elected to the Olympic Hall of Fame in 1992