Majer 'Mike' Mekel

Danville- After a brave battle against chronic myelomonocytic leukemia and congestive heart failure, Majer Mike Mekel, 88, passed away during the early morning hours of Friday, October 22, 2010, at his residence in Valley Park, Missouri. Born in April of 1922, in Vilna, Poland, Mike, who was fluent in six languages, traveled vast expanses of Europe and Russia during World War II. Enduring incredible conditions and surviving unlikely odds, his experiences included being: a political prisoner in White Russia; an inmate, who worked as a lumberjack, in a Gulag-run labor campnear the Arctic Circle until granted amnesty; a tractor brigadier at a kolkhoz, a Soviet collective farm; and an officer-level Artillery Observer in the Polish Army. Following his escape from the Polish Army, he served as the Messing Officer at an American-operated International Refugee Organization in Germany, where he oversaw the wellbeing of nearly 7,000 displaced persons directly following the war. After his service, he and his family immigrated to the United States, initially settling in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania, and ultimately relocating to Danville, Illinois. A six-decade resident of Danville, Mike was the proprietor of multiple businesses, including a liquor store, a tavern, two hardware stores, and a farm. Of all of his numerous achievements, Mike was most proud of his two daughters, who survive him: Michele Mekel, a professor of law and medicine, residing in Carbondale, Illinois; and Marlene Mekel, a research scientist, living in High Ridge, Missouri. He is also survived by his son-in-law, Patrick McConnell, who is married to Marlene. In addition, his two sisters, Betty Novick and Barbara Toporek, survive him. His wife of 36 years, Estelle (Glass) Mekel, preceded him in death in 2005. He is also predeceased by his parents, Muni and Rosalia Mekel. Visitation for Majer Mike Mekel will be held between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Sunday, October 24, 2010, at Sunset Funeral Home and Cremation Center, A Life Celebration Home at 3940 North Vermilion Street in Danville, Illinois. The memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, October 25, 2010, at Sunset, followed by interment at Springhill Cemetery. Please direct memorials to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society or the American Heart Association. Condolences may be sent to the family online at www.sunsetfuneralhome.com.