Michael C. Stinson

Michael Stinson, 70, of Mt. Pleasant, passed away Monday, October 15, 2018, at his home. Cremation has taken place and visitation will be held at Charles R. Lux Family Funeral Home on Monday, October 29, 2018 from 4 to 6. An Irish wake will be held at Stir, next to Hunters Ale House (on Bluegrass Rd.), following visitation on Monday, October 29, from 6 to 9 p.m. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, October 30, at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Shepherd with Father Fred Kawka officiating. The family will receive friends at the church one hour prior to the service. A luncheon will be held immediately after the service in the parish center. Memorial contributions may be made to the Humane Animal Treatment Society (HATS) of Mt. Pleasant. Envelopes are available at the funeral home. Mike was born June 4, 1948 in Auburn, NY, son of the late Robert and Edith (Wells) Stinson. He grew up in Skaneateles, NY, and went to Skaneateles High School. Early on his family owned a mail boat that traversed Skaneateles Lake to deliver the mail, and he had good memories of those times. Mike, an alum of CMU, received his Bachelors degree there in Mathematics in 1971. He went on to achieve a Master of Science in Probability & Statistics, and Master of Arts in Mathematics from Michigan State University, and received his Doctoral degree in Computer Science in 1988 from Louisiana State University. LSU would forever hold a special place in Mikes heart not just because he was a huge Tigers fan, but because there he met the love of his life, Julie Bond. They were married on May 23, 1993 at St. Johns Episcopal Church in Mt. Pleasant. Their daughter, Megan, was born on June 9, 1996. Michael cherished his wife and daughter and often told people, I am the luckiest man alive. Michael also cherished his dogs and was a great animal and nature lover. In addition to being a dedicated family man, Mike was a wonderful friend to everyone he met. His zest for life, learning, and laughter drew everyone to him like a magnet. He made people laugh with his stories of past adventures (some true, some not so much), and always had an appropriate joke or two for any occasion. Michael loved his university life at CMU, both as an undergraduate and a professor. He was a dedicated educator known for his passion for teaching. His devotion to his students changed countless lives as he encouraged them to immerse themselves in the fields of Computer Science and Information Technology. He actively sought to improve student learning and traveled around the country looking for new ways to engage students in the classroom. His office was often filled with students who were looking for help with homework or were just there to absorb his wisdom and laugh at his jokes. He served as advisor to CMUs Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) student organization and traveled with students to numerous programming competitions and conferences as he encouraged them to pursue their dreams. He was often seen volunteering at home football games selling concessions in order to raise money for the AITP student organization. Mike was also instrumental in helping students obtain internships and start their full-time careers at companies such as Ford, General Motors, and Auto Owners Insurance. He was a helpful mentor to new faculty members. He served on the Pascal Standards programming language committee, and was the Chair of the Computer Science Department for seven years where he led the search for the next generation of computer science professors and spearheaded many improvements to the department. His humor, dedication, and innovation will be greatly missed. Mike is survived by his wife, Julie; daughter, Megan Stinson of Mt. Pleasant; two siblings, Kathy Stinson (Larry Phillips) of Weedsport, NY, and John Stinson of Pittsburgh, PA; sister-in-law, Faye Stinson of Reston, VA; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, and brother, Robert Bob Stinson. To leave a condolence for the family or to sign the online guest book please visit www.CharlesRLux.com