Lasting Memories

Michael Anthony McCabe
Jan. 25, 1941-Oct. 1, 2024
Palo Alto, California

Mike McCabe passed away at home surrounded by his family on October 1, 2024 after a six-year battle with blood cancer. He led a magnificent, long, healthy life. According to those who knew him, he was the best dad, husband, and friend imaginable.

In 1941, Mike was born to Elizabeth and John McCabe who owned a tavern on the south side of Chicago. After his parents’ divorce, Mike attended school on the north side of the city and graduated from Loyola Academy, even though this involved a long subway commute from the south side--plus hitchhiking the final miles to reach his high school in Wilmette, a northern suburb. Like Michele Obama, he could claim that in his youth he did a strenuous Chicago commute for his education.

In 1963, Mike graduated from Marquette University, the first person in his family to graduate from college. He was immediately drafted into the US Army and served in Korea near the DMZ. When his division was sent to Vietnam, Mike stayed back in Korea because he had been trained in the crypto code. Then he ran seminars teaching officers how to be better writers. Thus, his quick intellect let him serve in ways other than direct combat.

Once out of the army, Mike earned a Master’s in English at DePaul University, then began working as a reporter in Aurora, Illinois, eventually moving on to the Minneapolis Star and the Chicago Tribune. Sometimes, being a journalist could be hazardous, like the time Mike was covering a gunman holding hostages in a grocery store. When the gunman said he wanted a member of the press to come in, Mike ended up talking the guy into surrendering. In Chicago, he and his partner went undercover with the drug cops to see what goes into keeping parks safe from drug trafficking.

An avid runner in his thirties and forties, Mike completed 26 marathons, including Boston. One time, his Chicago Tribune editors appreciated that Mike ran 12 miles to work after the Blizzard of ’79 shut down roads and transit.

Mike loved to say that one of the biggest “wins” of his life was meeting the love of his life, Jane, when he was a reporter in Minnesota who she interviewed for a college assignment. Married in 1978, they eventually welcomed Claire and Nick, which Mike declared was “the best thing that ever happened to me.” They moved to Los Gatos in 1982, eventually settling in Palo Alto in 1984 and have been in the same house ever since.

As a reporter in California, Mike covered hard news like the earthquake of ’89 as well as conflicts between developers and environmentalists. He made sure everyone knew about a proposal to extend Route 380 to the ocean. Once, he reported on the lack of running water in a town near Watsonville, and this led to water for the residents. He also wrote feature stories that took him on journeys through his new adopted state, learning about redwoods and nature preserves and clean energy.

In 2002, he retired from the Chronicle just as his wife was starting her teaching career, and they enjoyed a role reversal of Jane being the “breadwinner” while he loved the role of house husband. He designed and built a magical layout of gardens in his front and back yards. He had time to learn new sports: biking and golf. Mike was introverted but hilarious, often enjoying a glass of wine at 5:40 pm sharp, but never earlier in the day. Mike liked traveling with Jane to Europe, but he preferred to be home and didn’t enjoy big crowds or going out. He claimed his house was “heaven on earth.” He said he couldn’t believe he got to live in his little house in Palo Alto, a place with a perfect climate, where he could read his book, birdwatch, or relax on the patio at dusk with his wife.

Mike loved his wife, children, and grandchildren and was a favorite of both the South Court neighbors and his wife and kids’ friends. Everyone recalls what a good listener he was. He could crack up a room with a sardonic lift of his eyebrow.

In his final few years, he welcomed three grandchildren: Cyrus, Sebastian, and Octavia. He was so grateful to live long enough to meet them, and he endured daunting medical treatments to have more time getting to know them.

Mike is survived by his wife Jane, children Claire (Patrick) and Nick (Neda) and his three grandchildren. His parents and brother John predeceased him.