Richard Thomas Michel - Obituary

ichard Thomas “Rich” Michel, 86, a 5-year resident of the Heritage Harbour community in Annapolis, MD and previously of Huntington, NY, passed away peacefully on August 10, 2021 surrounded by his family. Born on June 19, 1935 in Bronx, NY to the late Charles and Rose Michel, Rich was one of four children. He studied industrial relations at the Community College of New York where he was awarded a Bachelor’s degree in 1959. The following year, Rich joined the U.S. Army and began a 5-year commitment which ended in 1965 when he was honorably discharged from Fort Dix in New Jersey. Rich joined the Johnson and Higgins Insurance Company shortly after his discharge and enjoyed a 31-year career as a commercial insurance broker until his retirement in 1997. In 1954, Rich was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles organization as a pitcher. He continued to be an avid sports fan, especially of the New York Yankees, Giants and Knicks. He also enjoyed reading and gardening. His greatest joy though came from spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren. In addition to his parents, Rich was preceded in death by his brothers, Charles and Robert Michel. He is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Frances; three sons, Kevin Michel and his wife, Madeline of Ronkonkoma, NY, Stephen Michel and his fiancée, Deborah Turek of Bermuda, and Rich Michel and his wife, Key of Summit, NJ; his daughter, Sharon Dougal and her husband, Jason of Davidsonville, MD; one sister, Marion Pettit of New Port Richey, FL; and nine grandchildren, Owen, Giles, Mackenzie, Cooper and Sydney Michel and Logan, Ryan, Grayson and Parker Dougal. Friends are invited to celebrate Rich’s life with his family from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, August 13 at the Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory, 2973 Solomons Island Road, Edgewater, MD. Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 14 at Holy Family Catholic Church, 826 W. Central Avenue, Davidsonville, MD. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital On-line condolences may be offered using the Memory Wall tab at the top of this page.