Daniel Michalski

Daniel E. Michalski, known to friends and family as "Mitch," died on July 7, 2016 in Hospice of Northwest Ohio after declining health as a result of a fall in his West Toledo home. He was 88 years old.

Born and raised in the Polish neighborhood of Kuhschwantz, Mitch was the youngest of the 7 sons and 5 daughters of Frank and Josephine Michalski. He attended St. Hyacinth's Grade School and continued on at Central Catholic High School before transferring to Devilbiss High School and then Macomber-Whitney Vocational High School. In 1947 he began working as a final inspector at Doehler-Jarvis Company, which at the time was the largest supplier of die-cast metal products for the auto industry. After serving in the Korean War, he returned to Doehler-Jarvis and took another assignment as a block-and-holder maker. He also served as a shop steward for the United Auto Workers Union in the 1950s in Doehler Jarvis Plant #2.

In 1954, Mitch married Lucille and the two welcomed their daughter, Darlene, the next year. The family made its home in West Toledo for the remainder of his life. The home, filled with his handmade wood carvings and his wife's outstanding cooking, was a gathering place for family, friends and neighbors for over 50 years. In an interview for the University of Toledo Press volume "American Originals," on Toledo's Polish Community, he recalled when asked about his proudest accomplishment, "When I got married, met Lu, and had Darlene. That was the best thing to happen. Nothing else matters. Now that I look back on it, nothing else matters. Those are the nice things."

In his retirement, Mitch continued to produce imaginative pieces of wood work as a member of Black Swamp Woodcarvers Club. After his wife passed away, he was embraced by his neighbors and the members of Emmanuel Baptist Church.
He leaves to cherish these memories his daughter, Darlene (Greg Shoemaker), many nephews and nieces, and a host of friends and neighbors.

The family appreciates the care and consideration offered to Mitch by the staff of Henderson House and Hospice of NW Ohio
.
The family will receive guests on Saturday, July 16, 2016 from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Newcomer Funeral Home, 4150 W. Laskey Rd. (419-473-0300). Memorial Services will begin in the funeral home on Saturday, beginning at 3:00 pm.
In lieu of flowers, for those wishing to send an expression of sympathy, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Northwest Ohio or North Coast Greyhound Connection.