Garrick "Gary" Mishaga

“I like November best, because it reminds me of me. …I’m too old to fall in love, but ain’t old enough to die...” ----Robert Ruark “The Old Man and the Boy” Alas, Garrick Mishaga, SJHS ’58, now joins a long list of former classmates who succumbed to “STAY OFF PAGE THIRTEEN”. Garrick “Gary” Mishaga, born 84 years ago in Cleveland, Ohio, on November 10, 1940, the 164th anniversary of the United States Marine Corps. Gary was formerly of South Euclid, OH; of late a resident of Mentor, OH. The eldest of six children of Andrew and Antoinette (nee DiSanto) Mishaga, both deceased. Gary is survived by Ellen, his best friend and loving wife; privileged to have walked by her side for 27 years of marriage. They were married on Valentine’s Day, 1998. Surviving him from his previous marriage are his sons, Garrick, Jr., (Susan), Springfield, OR, Michael (Lisa), Cleveland, OH and Joseph (Patrice), Chesterland, OH. Other surviving family members include his brothers, Richard (Paula), Newberg, OR, Andrew (Ramona), Houston, TX, Gregory (Tom), Tucson, AZ, and sister, Mary Elizabeth Gurule (John H.), Rio Rancho, NM, Ralph (deceased). Brother-in-law, Ronald DeCillo (Gloria), Strongsville, OH and numerous grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins. A proud and loyal son of St. Joseph High School, Cleveland, Ohio; Gary graduated in 1958. During his high school years, he was an honor student, varsity athlete in football and track, and Student Council and Senior Class President. He cherished his days at SJHS and maintained lifelong standing friendships throughout the years. After high school, he worked summers on the lake freighters, played half-back for a champion middle-weight Cleveland Muni-Football team, and taught 7th and 8th grades at Our Lady of Good Counsel and Gesu Parochial Schools. In 1965 he graduated from JCU with a BS/SS degree. At his 45th high school class reunion, his former classmates bestowed the lifetime honor of “’58 PFL” (President for Life) as grateful recognition of his steadfast devotion and diligence to his graduating class. He also was a charter member of the SJHS ’58 “Stay Off Page Thirteen Club, (Triskaidekaphobia Club) a quarterly luncheon club of St. Joe’s ’58 classmates established in circa 1983. In 2009, Garrick was inducted into the VASJ Hall of Fame. Gary had a colorful and varied career covering a variety of positions in the Manufacturing Industry, Food Service, Education and Business. Before he retired, as a Realtor and Real Estate Broker, his last 20 years of his 35 year real estate career were spent as an Inventory Specialist liquidating relocation and bank REO properties. Later in life, Gary was best known for his affection of the outdoors and “hunting”. “The man lived each season by the call of the wild”. As a bow hunter and waterfowl and deer hunter, he pursued game in nine states, as well as, Canada, Argentina, SA, Honduras and Nicaragua, CA, and South Africa. In 2012, Gary fulfilled a “life time dream” of hunting plains game in South Africa. And while on safari in South Africa’s Northern Cape Province, he took four trophies. Throughout his hunting life, his “conservation legacy” was to give back to the hunting community. He was a member, in good standing, of the Ashtabula Rod & Gun, Orwell Gun Club, and was a former Certified Master Instructor of Hunter Safety Education, State of Ohio. Gary’s political philosophies tended to be that of a constitutional, nationalistic conservative...borders, language, culture. He was a staunch defender of an “originalist” and “textualistic” interpretation of the United States Constitution, in particular the Bill of Rights. He believed the Second Amendment was the keystone to our freedoms. Even his vanity license plates, “R R2KBA”, (Our Right to Keep and Bear Arms), reflected his belief. And as such, he was most proud to be a Life Member of the NRA. The family will receive friends from 4-8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 at Brunner Sanden Deitrick Funeral Home & Cremation Center, 8466 Mentor Ave., Mentor, OH 44060. A Funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 at St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church, 8560 Mentor Ave., Mentor, OH 44060. Please meet at the church. Interment will be in Mentor Cemetery, Mentor, OH. At his request, no flowers please. Contributions may be made in his memory to the Hunt of a Lifetime Foundation, P.O. Box 241, Harborcreek, PA 16421 or online at huntofalifetime.org/donations or to the Marine Corps – Law Enforcement Foundation, Inc., online at www.mc-lef.org/donate or to the Class of ’58 Scholarship Fund, c/o VASJ High School, 18491 Lakeshore Blvd, Cleveland, OH 44119. Offer condolences at www.brunners.com. Quotes: “The best things in life are the people you love, the places you’ve seen, and the memories you’ve made along the way”. “Deum Diligite Animalia Diligentes” (Honoring God by Honoring His Creatures)

Garrick "Gary" Mishaga

November 10, 1940 - March 6, 2025