“We are all just walking each other home.â€
Our beloved Mike Herson-Roeser walked home on March 5, 2024, his hands held by his wife Mary and his son Bennett. Mike was an extraordinary man who lived his life with kindness, resilience, and grace. He exemplified as much courage and humor in the last 14 months of his life when he was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer, as he did when he was first diagnosed with cancer as a young college student. Although these were defining experiences for him, he chose not to be defined by illness itself, but by what it taught him about himself, about life, about what is truly important, and about what it means to be a good person.
Mike believed that being a life partner to Mary and a father to Bennett were his “bonuses†in life. As a husband and best friend, Mike was Mary’s North Star, her home. It was a privilege for her to be a witness to the life of this remarkable man. And as a father, he would go anywhere and do anything with and for his son. Every year on Bennett’s birthday, Mike would proudly announce that he had won the lottery. He was as proud of his son as his son was of him, and Bennett treasured his dad’s constant presence as a role model, a paragon of good character, a trusted guide through life’s uncertainties, and as a friend. How blessed are we to have been loved so well by this tender man!
Mike was a humble person who privileged relationships and life’s simplicities over material things. He delighted in the sound of a well-hit golf ball, the smell of rain, a starry night, the roar of the crowd at Lambeau (and the surreptitious cherries that would soon follow), the smells and sounds of a wood fire, and listening to his son play the piano.
Mike is the son of Dick (Alice) Roeser and Janice Roeser. His dad exposed him at a young age to the game of golf, and on many Saturday mornings, the two of them could be found on the links of Brown County Golf Course, competing with and against each other. Mike and his mom loved to travel. They shared so many adventures together, from coast to coast. Mike enjoyed attending Packer games with his brother Paul (Lori) (the M&M Boys) in section 133, where they perfected the art of play-by-play analysis. He enjoyed a deep friendship with his sister Sandy, and he was always tremendously proud of her. Mary’s family adored Mike—the “favorite†(only) son/brother- in-law. Her family consists of Rodger (deceased) and Julia Herson, John and Deb Herson, Kathy Herson and Peggy Morsch, Andrew and Kelly Herson, Patrick and Claire Herson, Thomas Herson, and many nieces and nephews.
By any metric, Mike was a success. He enjoyed his work at Wesco for over 30 years. Many of his coworkers and customers became dear friends.
Though Mike visited places all over the world, it was the beauty of the Door County landscape that resonated with him most ever since he was little. He was grateful to be able to spend his last year there in his “little cabin in the woods,†supported by frequent visits from Bennett, family, andfriends. Prior to that, Mike had lived most of his adult life in De Pere where he regularly could be spotted cheering in the stands of his son’s sporting events; walking “the loop†with his wife and dogs; or helping a friend, family member, or neighbor with a project.
Mike, Mary, and Bennett would like to thank the many people who helped walk Mike home. Special thanks to Andrew and Kelly Herson for the many visits and calls, and for providing us with the nourishment of food and laughter. You often anticipated what we needed, and we are grateful for you. To Kathy Herson, who translated complicated medical information through the lens of love: your presence, especially on the day Mike died, made us all more comfortable in trying times. We are grateful for you. We would also like to thank Mike’s high school buddies, his “gang of thieves†and adopted brothers, as he fondly referred to you all: Scott (Tugger) and Pam Janssen, Mike and Rachel Rifleman, Tom and Laurie Malecki, and Mike Schoshinski. He loved and appreciated you all. You have enriched our lives. Thank you also to the countless people who have supported us in some way or another this past year: there is no such thing as helping in a “small way.†Your thoughts, words, actions, and prayers have made our world bigger and brighter.
Mike was ours and he was yours. Please join us in celebrating a life well lived on Saturday, March 16. There will be a visitation from 10am-12pm with a 12 o’clock prayer service at Ryan Funeral Home in De Pere. Flowers are welcome, but we strongly suggest that you write down a memory in advance—the longer, more colorful, silly, or teary-eyed the better—to give to the family in their efforts to compile a storybook of Mike’s life. |