(Jon) Michael Maher, 71, passed away on Friday, November 13th, 2020, of pancreatic cancer at his home in Tarpon Springs, Florida. He leaves behind his wife Ann, his daughter Alison (Manny Rumsey), his son Jonathan, and his grandson Bret Michael. Additionally, Michael is survived by his sister Denise (Bob Virkler), his brothers Bill (Jamie), Bob, and Mark (Jackie), his sister-in-law Cindy (Bobby Brooks), and his brother-in-law Rob (Julie) Standish. Seventeen nieces and nephews (Eric, Erin, Christopher, Kelly, Shannon, Sean, Kate, Christian, Michael, Colin, James, Melissa, Markie, Amanda, Robin, Julie and Carl) and their spouses and children complete the extended family of survivors.
Michael was born in Utica before his family moved to Watertown for his eventful childhood, as he recounted in stories. His family returned to the Utica area, and Michael graduated from Whitesboro High School where he and Ann met. (He had all of the answers in his math book, a sure come-on.) Michael and Ann graduated from SUNY Potsdam after their junior year marriage. Then he was off to North Dakota to study glacial geology. Following that ten year stint from September ’71 through May ’72, they returned to warmer climates and settled in Binghamton to start their years in teaching, forming dear friendships spanning over 40 years, and raising their two children, Alison and Jonathan (and their “second” son Rafi), encompassing the heart of Michael’s life.
Besides his own children, Michael immersed himself in the lives of numerous students, teaching and coaching first at St. Ambrose/Seton Catholic Middle School and then retiring from Harpursville High School after teaching Earth Science and Physics for nearly thirty years. The two subjects always seemed much drier than his sense of humor which ranged from quick wit to the groan inducing type of joke. Meeting a former student years later, the student vividly remembering Michael telling the MR Ducks joke in physics class. Groan! Michael was also that uncle to his nieces and nephews who would play with them, tease them, rile them up and then hand them back to the parents for bed-time. He had the same effect on dogs.
Michael was a life-time learner with varied topics of interests. His depth of knowledge also included various tidbits of trivia on a myriad of subjects. If he didn’t know an answer, creative explanations were given with a straight face that it would be difficult even for the closest friends to decide on the veracity. A good laugh and a good beer shared with friends and family was a favorite past time.
Michael was also a talented craftsman. Forty-four years were devoted to caring for and restoring an old circa 1853 farmhouse in the city. As a perfectionist, it took him a long time to accept “good enough” when not one room was totally square, to the point that he would measure a piece of six-foot long wallboard starting at one and three-quarter inches, tapering down to a measurement of one quarter inch. His children were raised there and so many memories were made. Their growth and accomplishments celebrated here in this old house, and their sorrows and disappointments were comforted. The house’s stained glass windows inspired Michael (Candy Glassworks) to create many stained glass windows and pieces of his own.