RIP Mr. Mike

So...one of my two or three closest friends died last month. It came out of nowhere for the most part. 

Mike, our friend Dan Tobin and I would text each other our wordle result every morning and when Dan brought it to my attention that we didn't get it from Mike by late one Friday, I texted and called him and didn't hear anything. And then the next morning when I still hadn't heard from him, I decided to drive to West Chester to his apartment and when I got there his car was there and there was a package outside his door and the door was locked. 

So I called 911 and the police came over and broke in and found him sitting on a couch with his hands folded in his lap with no signs of foul play or intent. Quite the shock. He had been ill with a lot of chest and arm pain but his doctor diagnosed it as severe heartburn. It had been going on for weeks but seemed to be getting better. It would come and go from hour to hour. I tried to get him to go to the ER Tuesday night but he had seen his doc and had some tests done and was put on medication that only seemed to help a little. He was supposed to get a CAT scan Wed morning but had to reschedule after he had a morning cup of coffee before reading the instructions that he wasn't supposed to have any before the test. He died the next day, probably within an hour or so of my asking how he was feeling. 

We had his memorial service this past Saturday at the Downingtown Friends Meetinghouse and it was wonderful. So many lovely messages about Mike, from his sister Ellen, his niece Alice, Trevor, his good friend Judge Pat Carmody, many ex-co-workers and of course, me. Actually, I was able to speak 3 times including the introducing explanation of things and the closing, so I guess I may have overspoken.

And then we had an amazing gathering of 35-40 folks back at our house that night, with Dan and the Ya-ya's staying over. Kate, Bunny, Audrey and I talked until 2:30a.m. and then after they headed off to bed, I sat on the couch and stared at the fire for another half hour or so, thinking about Mike and the previous 24 hours that included the dedication of a plaque on a bench in Mike's honor, attended by 2 County Commissioners, a few judges, a former Congressman and 20 or so others. (See story and photos below.)

The only thing I'll share here from my messages in the service is the one thing that probably sums up my sense of loss. The week after he died, I thought to myself: I need to tell Mike that we need to go to breakfast, as we so often did, to tell him that my good friend Mike had died. 

The best thing about telling that story was that after the service Jeff Domenick and my sister-in-law Anita said they'd be happy to meet me for breakfast any time. Love.

I'll share here some of the many articles that appeared in the Daily Local News and in the Philly Inquirer about Mike:

https://www.dailylocal.com/2025/10/27/the-consummate-newsman-daily-local-news-reporter-michael-p-rellahan-remembered/

https://www.dailylocal.com/2025/10/27/the-consummate-newsman-daily-local-news-reporter-michael-p-rellahan-remembered/

https://www.inquirer.com/obituaries/michael-rellahan-obituary-west-chester-news-reporter-20251106.html

https://www.dailylocal.com/2025/11/22/officials-family-pay-tribute-to-our-newspaper-man-michael-p-rellahan/

And my favorite: https://www.dailylocal.com/2025/10/31/column-chester-county-remembers-mike-rellahan-our-newspaperman/

I know you have no idea how respected and loved you were, m'dude, you Professor of Dude-eronomy, and you wouldn't even believed anyone if they told you. But you were, and I'll miss you as long as I'm breathing.