Michael B. Warrick

Surrounded by his greatest joy, his family, Michael B. Warrick went home in the early hours of Thursday, November 1st. Having fought long and courageous, he was defeated by prostate cancer. Michael lived his entire life in Toledo. Through all in which he was involved deeply, be it hockey, ballet, work, or the church, Michael has made an indelible mark on the lives of everyone he encountered and came to know. With God and the Catholic Church as his anchor, Michael excelled in everything he set out to accomplish and through his life he had the opportunity to revisit his greatest passions, fulfilling completely, any voids that remained. His favorite sport was hockey and played in a travel league as a teen. As a young adult and even later, he played again for many years as an impressive member of drop-in leagues at both Tam-o-Shanter and the Ice House. He loved the sport and being a life-long NY Rangers fan, he finally got to see them play on their home ice at Madison Square Garden just last year. He began dancing ballet as a young adult to “keep in shape”. For over 30 years, he danced with the Cassandra Ballet School and then the Toledo Ballet. Dancing was a great passion beginning with Summer Stock in Lockhaven, PA as a young adult and culminating later in life with the opportunity to perform professionally with the Bartlesville, OK ballet in Cinderella for Soili Arvola as an Ugly Stepsister. He has been a part of Toledo Ballet’s annual Nutcracker and various ballet productions for almost 30 years and over the past 10 or so, has performed lead roles in each of Michael Lang’s spring productions – something he enjoyed greatly, as it expanded his repertoire to include some acting. He remains a beloved member of the Toledo Ballet. Some of his greatest memories have been sharing the stage with his 5 daughters and he had that opportunity often. Still of the athlete mindset, Michael most recently enjoyed being a player for the Toledo Jewish Federation Softball League. This activity gave him the opportunity to not only participate in a sport, but more importantly, spend fun quality time with his brother, Tim, as well as spend time with a great group of guys! The memories he gained from this experience carried him and when he was awarded the Dick Greenblatt Teammate Award at the season-end banquet this year, it brought him to tears. Because of his health challenges, he did not feel deserving of such an honor. Over the past several years, he and his siblings’ bond became the strongest it could be. His relationship with Tim and Michelle, along with their spouses Sharon and David, was a bond that he cherished deeply due to his life-long desire for “family”. Even though all couldn’t meet regularly, the times spent together at holidays will be unforgettable; Thanksgiving playing football in the front yard and the traditions of Grace and carving the turkey, Christmas with Karaoke and Michelle’s scavenger hunts. Michael was the proud owner of Klassic Kuts full service hair salon for the past 14 years and he was a phenomenal hairdresser for the past 35 years. Being a servant leader with great integrity in running a business was of the utmost importance to him and he accomplished that mission without flaw! MOST important to Michael was his faith and it was unshakable to the end. Michael converted to the Catholic faith at the age of 17. Through his catholic life, he was a faithful servant, a Eucharistic minister, and a lector at Rosary Cathedral. He studied under the deaconate program as a younger man, but having some exterior roadblocks through the process, he discerned that it was not his calling. He felt his true calling was to write about his faith and he successfully published his first work – A Layman’s Journey: In Search of Spirituality. He continued to write up to the time of his passing, as he felt he had so much more to say. More recently, he founded a Men’s Fellowship Group at Rosary Cathedral – a group to meet once per month to discuss the challenges, rewards, and “how to” of living a faith-based life. We, his family, are all confident that the Lord, upon meeting Michael face to face, has embraced Michael as a gleaming example! Finally, the absolute love of Michael’s life was his family! Michael’s best friend and wife, Sansa, his daughters and eventually their families, brought him the greatest joy this world could offer! Having raised 5 beautiful daughters with so much love, laughter, trials, and fun, he IS so proud of the women they have become! For the past 2 years, every Sunday has been “family day” and the family would get together for keeping close touch with each other, puzzles and games, playing with grand-children, watching football with his current and future son-in-laws, and the day winding down with a large home cooked meal! This tradition will continue and he will still be sitting at the head of our table. Leaving to cherish Michael’s precious memory: His wife of 29 years, Sansa; daughters Ariel (Christopher) Clouse, Hannah (Eric) Gauer, Levia (Caleb) Whittum, Semira (Zachary) Greenwood, Talya Warrick and his someday son-in-law John F. Kennedy; grandchildren Zaine, Elijah, Kanaan, Landon, and Novembr; Step-mother Audrey Warrick, siblings Timothy J. (Sharon) Warrick, Michelle H. (David) Schmid; nephew Paul Warrick, and nieces, Chloe and Emma Schmid, close friends, Paul Wernert, Chris Zarecki, Andrew Reinhart, Dino Piccinini, Rob Koenig, and Michael Lang. Preceding Michael in death were his father Bert J. Warrick and his mother, Jacqueline T. Vermett. Friends may visit the family on Sunday from 2-9 p.m. at Walker Funeral Home 5155 Sylvania Ave. (west of Corey Rd). Funeral services will begin Monday with visitation at Our Lady, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral 2561 Collingwood Blvd. Toledo, OH 43610 from 9:00-10:00a.m. followed by a funeral Mass at 10:00 a.m. The family would like to express a heartfelt thank you to Dr. Timothy Kasunic and the entire team at Toledo Clinic Cancer Center, Dr. Timothy Schuster, and Promedica Hospice – especially Nurse Kelli Melich - who with her incredible expertise, compassion and kindness, helped Michael’s family through the worst day of their lives! Any donations or memorials may be made in his name to Rosary Cathedral.