Michael Owen Schellhase

Michael Owen Schellhase (12/4/46 - 3/26/25), 78, passed away peacefully as he slept at home in Canton, GA after a four-year battle with lung cancer. With the same flare he swept in to propose to Cheryl in 1969 at Gloria’s in Evansville, Mike asked the angels above to play their song on the jukebox and joined her side exactly two months after her death. Mike is also preceded in death by his lovingly supportive parents Marjorie May (Bollinger) Schellhase and David Gene Schellhase, who were always up for anything. Mike (or Mick to many) was born in Evansville on December 4, 1946 to Marge and Dave, and with his older brother Dave, Jr. already rolling, the family was ready to run and jump and shoot and throw; family, faith, friends, and sports became central values in Mike’s childhood and life. Growing up on Keck Avenue, Mike earned a diploma in ear-pulling and faith in God from his beloved St. Theresa Church and School while roaming the neighborhood with the gang. Mike graduated from North High School in 1964 and Purdue University in 1968. Working his way through Purdue in the great food hall of Sigma Chi, one of the fraternity's original tables still hosts our family gatherings. He treasured his years at Purdue, inspiring all three of his children to follow in his footsteps, all hailing our old Purdue. Tradition and sentiment mattered to Mike, and he always led with humility and love . . . and humor. He had a way of making everyone around him feel like a million bucks. When the poet Maya Angelou claimed that “people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel,” she may have had Mike Schellhase as her guidepost. He taught kids and touched countless lives for many years at The Evansville Day School, Washington Elementary, and North High School -- yes, he taught them how to shoot and throw and catch, but more importantly, he taught them how to lead, how to believe in themselves, and how to forgive. He was a fantastic teacher and coach of many sports, but he was especially talented at teaching his true love of basketball. Oh, the X’s and O’s in that man’s mind. The game and the team became symbols in life for our family. Work hard, play hard, but also: show up, learn from the bad days, take breaks, and always end with a handshake, or better yet, a hug. He also took a career detour into sales and away from teaching, a career that took him on the road and into many adventures in life, including running his own company and moving to Georgia. All the while, Mike’s passion was for people. He loved people, especially his people, but all people; he never met a stranger, and he always saw the good in each individual. He listened. He cared deeply. He didn’t miss a little league game or a musical (even though he counted the songs and checked them off on the program). He would have to leave the gym if Katie was on the beam because he was afraid of heights and could feel her falling even when she didn’t. But, he was there, with his capacity for empathy on full display. If Mike Schellhase was on your team, it was a very good day. Mike is survived by his brother, David Gene Schellhase, Jr. of Logansport, and his sister, Marge Schellhase Pickett (Derrick) of Evansville, and he is survived by many in-laws, nieces and nephews, cousins, and cousins removed that he adored and loved. He would bark-sing “Jingle Bells” in Aunt Lou’s basement upon request to prove it. He is survived by the greatest friends in the world who also love to draw X’s and O’s. He is also survived by his devoted and adoring children and grandchildren: Katie Reece (Schellhase) Moss and her children William Callaway Moss, Charles Michael Moss, and Julia Reece Moss of Atlanta; Mark David Schellhase (Katherine Marshall) and their children Matthew Byrd Schellhase, Cooper Kate Schellhase and Rhett Michael Schellhase of Boca Raton; and, Gregory Michael Schellhase (Ellen Garzynski) and their children Claire Elizabeth Schellhase and Owen Robert Schellhase of Zionsville. We will hold one another the way that Mike and Cheryl (Mick and CK) would have wanted. We will celebrate the magnificent lives of both Cheryl Kaye (Bruce) Schellhase and Michael Owen Schellhase on Saturday, May 24 at Browning Funeral Home in Evansville. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. with the service at 11:00, officiated by Father Ted Tempel. Procession and interment will follow at Sunrise Cemetery in Evansville. The caring staff of Darby Funeral Home is honored to serve the Schellhase family.

Tributes

Michael Owen Schellhase

December 4, 1946 - March 26, 2025