Another Good Man Dies

Mike Warner

My old buddy Mike Warner died late last week and I'm going to miss that damn old grouch, who never agreed with me on much of anything. Mike and I were political opposites, but there was always a respect between us, I think, and I grew fond of both that respect and the man who gave it.

He was 78 and had opinions over on the right, but Mike never denigrated people, never condescended, always tried to understand and occasionally would grant a point that was made. He lived in Roanoke 42 years and made a mark that was deep and wide--working on boards as importantant and varied as St. Andrews Catholic Church, Apple Ridge Farms, Virginia Western Community College, Foundation for Roanoke Valley, Valley Bank, Petroleum Marketers, Inc., Downtown Roanoke, Inc., Center in the Square, Mill Mountain Theatre and Roanoke Catholic Schools.

The generous man in Mike occasionally raised kids that weren't his and he affected the lives of many others with his time as a football coach and a U.S. Marine. He was an old Catholic boy who went to Georgetown University and Villanova, but I think his heart was here. I'm going to miss him and those notes I occasionally got from him telling me I did something wrong ... or something right. Either way, he knew how to make his point without insulting and with respect. A good man he was.