Richard Allen Masters

Richard Masters, known by his friends as Dick, has passed away on June 4, 2015, at the age of 81, at the DJ Jacobetti Home for Veterans in Marquette. He will be missed by many. Dick was friendly and outgoing; a well-known and well-liked member of the community in Munising, and an Elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Munising. He was in good health for most of his life, and was in fact very athletic, but in recent years a stroke, a knee replacement surgery that he never fully recovered from, and then Parkinson's disease all took their toll.

Dick was the second of four children born to Wally and Agnes Masters, both deceased, and was the last surviving sibling. His brothers Bob, (wife Dorothy), and Howard, (wife Bonnie), as well as his sister Lois, have all pre-deceased him.

A lifelong resident of Munising, he graduated from Mather High School in 1951, and joined in the Marines shortly thereafter. He served in Korea, and was honorably discharged as a Sergeant in 1956. Dick was very proud of being a Marine, and he had a favorite cap with the Marine Corp logo on it that in recent years he could be seen wearing most every day until the day he died.

While he was still in the Marines, he returned from Korea to the U.S., and in December of 1954, he married Patricia Dolan and they started a family together. Dick served his country over twenty-three years with the USMC and U.S. Army National Guard. He got his Bachelor's Degree from Northern Michigan University, as well as a Masters Degree from the University of North Carolina, and he got a job as a history teacher at Mather High School. Some years later, he changed jobs to become the librarian for the high school as well as for the public library for Alger County. After retiring from the library, he took on a new career selling real estate at State Wide Real Estate in Munising.

Sports have always played a very big part of Dick's life, and in addition to teaching at Mather High, he also enjoyed coaching basketball, and he was also a frequent referee for many high school sports. Even after he retired from the school system, he still played basketball on Saturday mornings for many years with a group of like-minded friends who called their team the "Short, Fat, Old Guys." He also was a jogger, and even organized a marathon on the Seney Stretch. When he wasn't participating in sports, Dick was a loyal Detroit Lions fan, never wavering in his support, through thick and thin.

Dick is survived by his wife, Patricia, "Patty," and their four children: Colleen Skazalski (husband Mitch Skazalski), of Milford, Michigan; Kathleen Sowa, (husband Steve Sowa), of Munising, and sons Donald Masters and Gregg Masters, also both of Munising; and four grandchildren: Brent, Paige, Leslie, and Allison, several nieces and nephews, and sisters-in-law Dorothy and Bonnie Masters.

Dick's visitation and funeral service will be on Monday, June 8, 2015. Visitation will be on Monday from 11:00 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. at the Bowerman Funeral Home in Munising. Rev. Bill Lane will conduct his funeral service at the First Presbyterian Church in Munising at 2:00 p.m. The American Legion and Vietnam Honor Guard will conduct military honors at the Maple Grove Cemetery on Tuesday, June 9, 2015 at 2:00 p.m.