Michael Alan Koher Mr.

Michael Alan Koher, age 65, passed away on November 19, 2014 after a prolonged battle with Parkinson’s Disease. He is survived by his wife, Janie of 39 years; daughters Anne Hysong and Katherine Robinson, as well as two grand children, Audrey Elizabeth and Michael Thomas. He has two surviving brothers, Ross Koher of Strasberg, Ohio and Kenneth Koher of Navarre, Ohio. He graduated high school from Fairless High in Navarre, Ohio and then obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Education and Computer Science from Akron University in Ohio. He went on to obtain his Master degree in Mathematics from Akron University. He taught Algebra and Calculus at Hoover High School in North Canton, Ohio. Mike and Janie were married in 1975. Janie states “they have been married 39 years”. Mike’s comment is “we’ve been married 19 happy years”. His sense of humor will be greatly missed. In 1978, he began working as a programmer analyst at Republic Steel in Cleveland, Ohio, and then Progressive Insurance. He then decided that he no longer wanted to shovel snow, so the family moved to Lilburn, Georgia in metro Atlanta. He worked for American Software in Atlanta for several years and at Primerica in Duluth, Georgia. In 2008, Mike retired with disability when it was obvious that Parkinson’s had begun taking it’s terrible toll. In 2011, Janie and Mike moved to their present residence in Bethlehem, Ga. Michael was a 33 Degree Mason and is a Past Master of the Norcross Masonic Lodge #228 in Norcross, Georgia. Michael was a man of many talents, a lot of them hidden from those around him. He had a love of Math and Science and loved to see his students capture the same excitement that he had for numbers. He had an ear for languages, being fluent in German, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese with a working knowledge of French, Italian and Portuguese. There were very few history questions asked of him that he did not know the answers. He loved Model railroading, often had “sets” arranged of towns and villages. He taught his daughters the life skill of making trees from scratch to scale. He was a firm believer of giving back to his fellow man, whether that was on a personal level when a friend needed help or on a larger scale by getting up at 3:30am to make 250 breakfasts to order for Relay for Life. He spent countless hours at the Masonic Children’s Home in Macon, Ga. Sometimes for a workday, sometimes just to spend time with the children. He was an amazing father to his two daughters. He taught them many life skills, from cooking, to managing money, to knowing that they deserved love and respect from the men in their lives, to knowing that they could be anything they wanted, as long as they tried and didn’t give up. He was the best husband a wife could ask for. He was always doing the little things that counted more than flowers on a birthday. The hardest part of these last several years was watching him slowing disappear, both mentally and physically. So we will raise a glass to him now, and say “Prost”! Funeral services will be held at Wages and Son’s Funeral Home in Lawrenceville, with calling hours on November 21, 2014 from 6-8pm and a memorial service on November 22, 2014 at 11am. Michael will then be flown home to Navarre, Ohio, where a calling hours will be at Spidell Funeral Home in Brewster, Ohio on November 24, 2014 at 6-8pm, followed by a graveside service at Union Lawn Cemetery in Navarre, Ohio on November 25, 2014 at 10am. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation in Memory of Michael Koher. Arrangements by Wages & Sons Gwinnett Chapel, 1031 Lawrenceville Hwy, Lawrenceville, GA 30046, 770-277-4550. Online condolences may be expressed at www.wagesandsons.com.