Mike Was A Beacon Of Love And Friendship

I lost the love of my life Michael McGrath this past Sunday December 28, 2025. He was a bright light that shone for so many people in our families but also in a circle of friends that seemed to span the world.

Mike was born and raised in Iroquois Falls into a grand Irish Canadian family that originated from the Ottawa valley. His mother Emily McGrath imparted in him her kind and gentle spirit and his grandmother Margaret Dunn, whom everyone knew as Granny, guided and influenced his life. Their home was centred around the family piano where Mike and his sister Patty were serenaded from birth by their aunts Celia, Rita, Sara and Tessie. Their family then grew to include Celia’s husband Johnny Mercier; Rita’s husband Everett Elliott, Sara’s husband Don Paquette and Tessie’s husband Harvey Ruddy.

One of his greatest passions in life was music and as a teenager, he joined with a core group of friends including Barry Peever, Alex Cutten, Robin Olaveson, Rob Smith, Steve Lough and Ron Lefebvre who shared their musical talents or their love for music in their band ‘More Of The Sayme’. They stuck together like a band of brothers during those pivotal years of the 1960s when music, culture and ideas were changing.

As a young boy, he was introduced to motorcycles by a neighbour Gaston ‘Tots’ Lascelle and that passion for riding, combined with his talent as a writer, turned into a career that took him far from home to the city of Toronto. He went on to work for the corporate world at the provincial and national levels. Out of the corporate world, he built many friendships including a lifelong connection to Ted and Irene Casey, who allowed him to explore new ideas and passions for life.

His sister Patty also built her life in the south when she married John Bradley, a Mohawk from Six Nations. They had a daughter Brooke and from that moment, Mike treated his niece like a princess that he absolutely loved and adored. The Bradley family also became an integral part of his life as they showed only love, friendship, wisdom and guidance. When Brooke married her husband Rob and they had their two children Jack and Brynn, Mike’s world shone a lot brighter knowing that these two new people were in his life.

He never knew his father but later in life he discovered his dad James ‘Jimmy’ McGrath came from an Irish Canadian family in Toronto. James was a Second World War veteran who took part in the infamous Battle of the Scheldt in late 1944, where he was wounded and he also lost his younger 18 year old brother Patrick McGrath to this same conflict. We also discovered that two brothers Frank and Bernard also took part in the war. This sad chapter of Mike’s family history further entrenched his disdain for war. It became a constant reminder of how war is driven by wealth and that it only destroys the lives of those without money.

Mike constantly sought out ways to use his talents to represent others. In Toronto he worked with good friends Paul Toutant and Marie Jose Lacroix who persuaded him and his four legged friend Nicky to move to Montreal. In this city, he met the Doan family who were Vietnamese and they treated him and Nicky like one of their own. No matter where Mike travelled, it seemed he made powerful friendships everywhere.

He never forgot the north and he returned to Iroquois Falls where he became Museum Curator and later an Editor for the local newspaper The Enterprise. He reconnected with everyone and became great friends with local artist Alana Pierini and her husband Lee Holmes. He also never lost touch with Don Keast, an old family friend who shared his knowledge of sobriety and how to lead a healthier life.

Mike always searched for new ways to help others and in Timmins, he worked with Indigenous organizations to help promote First Nations arts, culture and language. Again, he built lifelong friendships including my own family the Kataquapits in Timmins. It was through this friendship that he met my cousin Ron Kataquapit and they took their shared love for music to build a new music group they titled ‘Under The Northern Sky’. They worked alongside Mike’s cousin John Elliott, a talented musician to produce an album ‘Spirit Of The Wolf’ that included a series of original songs.

I met Mike through Ron and when we first connected, he saw my interest in writing and encouraged me to become a writer. He became my mentor in so many ways and taught me how to use communications as a way to represent and advocate for my people. He pushed me to write a regular column in May 1998 and I haven’t stopped since.

Not only did we work together but we travelled together as we both wanted to see the world. We went to 35 countries and saw every major world ocean, the Pyramids, ancient Roman and Greek ruins, historic European centers, South Asian countries, Caribbean locations, South American sites and rode our motorcycles right across Canada.

Mike was like a never ending stream of activity, love and friendship. No matter where we went in the world he made friends. He gravitated to any old piano and he amazed people everywhere with how easily he could sing an old tune or come up with a new one. There are far too many stories for me to share here of Mike’s life and how he connected and touched so many people. His only lasting wish for everyone is that everyone do their very best to love one another, to be open to others, to question war, to stand up against inequality in wealth, to lead a clean sober life and do more to make a better, healthier and more equitable world for everyone.

Kee-sah-kee-eh-tin Mike. I love you Mike. Kee-sah-kee-eh-tin-nan Mike. We love you Mike.

www.underthenorthernsky.com