Muise, Joseph Michael "Mike" of Antigonish passed away on January 9, 2020, in St. Martha’s Regional Hospital, Antigonish.

Born in New Waterford, he was the seventh child of Joseph and Sophie (Deveaux) Muise.

After graduating from St. Francis Xavier University in 1965, Mike joined CUSO and was posted to Mombasa, Kenya, where he met the love of his life, Yvette, of Goan descent. Mike taught Math at the Sacred Heart Goan High School for two years, and his students from there still fondly remember their wonderful teacher from Canada who touched their lives for a brief time.

After their marriage in Mombasa in 1968, Mike and Yvette moved back to Canada and spent their first year in New Waterford as teachers, from whence they moved to Antigonish in 1969 and taught at the Dr. John Hugh Gillis Regional High School, retiring in 1998 and 2001 respectively. Mike loved Antigonish and his alma mater St. Francis Xavier University and the Coady Institute, welcoming the international students, particularly from Kenya, India, and Nigeria, to their home.  Together with Yvette, they wanted to make them feel at home, for they both had learnt firsthand what it was to be a stranger in a strange land.

Mike Muise is survived by his wife of 51 years, Yvette de Souza – Muise, and their children Dr. Aleixo (Dr. Debra Stein) and children, Joseph and Rachel, Toronto; Anna Marie (David Lewis) and children, Mikaela and Sophia, Ottawa; and Joseph (Kelly MacDonald) and children, Patrick and Heather, Vancouver.

Mike is also survived by his siblings, Wilfred ‘Yogi’ (Joanie MacKenzie), New Waterford; Rose Longley, Middleton; Delphin, Margaree; Betty Ann (Angus MacEachern), Howie Centre; Jim (Chris Corbett), Guysborough; sister-in-law, Alice; and numerous nephews and nieces; as well as Yvette’s siblings, Ben and Betty de Souza; Annabella and Alec Fernandes; Jerome and Ann de Souza; and Rhoda da Costa.

Besides his parents, he is predeceased by his parents-in-law, Aleixo and Laurie de Souza; brother, Medric; and sisters, Mary (Paddy) Carrigan and Theresa (John Joe) LeVert.

Visitation will be held Tuesday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9pm in C.L. Curry Funeral Home, 135 College Street, Antigonish. Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Wednesday at 11:00am at St. Ninian Cathedral, Antigonish, with Reverend Donald MacGillivray presiding.  Burial in the parish cemetery at a later date.

Family flowers only, please.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Ninian's St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Also, dearest Mike, first and foremost, you loved God,  and St. Ninian’s which you served unreservedly. You taught us to be true Christians, by your unwavering example. I thank God for sending you halfway across the world to find me and become my soulmate, my rock and my tower of strength. I am so lost without you. Love you forever.

A LAST FAREWELL:

My dearest darling Mike, saying ‘Farewell’ is the hardest thing we’ve ever had to do. Words cannot fill the void your departure to heaven has enveloped us in. God has taken you home as our special ‘Magi’ to see the Infant Jesus at this 2020 Feast of the Epiphany, just as He had guided the Three Maji to Bethlehem some 2000 years ago. You have answered a Divine Command, and we, your family sadly acquiesce with the Divine Plan, just as you did, my dearest Mike.

Your so-sudden departure, due to a single major heart attack, has shocked and broken all our hearts as you are remembered as a most wonderful husband, father, grandfather, brother, friend, math teacher, coach, and volunteer par excellence.

As a scholar and educator, with your BA; BEd; and MA-Education, you were an outstanding mathematician and a revered teacher. Your peers chose you as Head of the Math department at the John Hugh Gillis Regional High School, and you loved your entire Math department throughout your teaching career, and they loved you, too, as did all your students who sing your praises to this day. And, you played a vital role in the NSTU for many years. Kudos to you, Mike, many accolades came your way from all corners of Nova Scotia, and you remained the same wonderful husband, father, grandfather, teacher, and friend forever. Bless you.

One of your students, the now acclaimed Bruce MacKinnon, immortalized you in a couple of his artistic caricatures in his early drawings as a Math teacher and as a soccer coach at the Dr.J.H.Gillis High School, where you introduced soccer when the school first opened in the early 1970’s. They were amongst your treasured accolades.

Your proficiency as a sportsman in soccer, badminton, softball, curling, golfing, and swimming have not gone unnoticed. Added to this, your faithful commitment to fitness executed daily at the St. F.X. gym and pool over a period of fifty years has more than impressed us all, and your commitment to the St. Vincent De Paul Society is outstanding.

As treasurer of the SVDP Society, you spent many loving hours in your retirement, writing cheques, paying bills, and keeping meticulous records of all transactions, year after year, for the past ten years or more. You dedicated your retirement years as a champion of the poor, and for that you are much-loved and admired. Your family knows just how much honour you felt to have been assigned such an important role in SVDP. 

Also, dearest Mike, first and foremost, you loved God, and St. Ninian’s which you served unreservedly. You taught us to be true Christians by your unwavering example. I thank God for sending you halfway across the world to find me and become my soulmate, my rock, and my tower of strength. I am so lost without you. Love you forever.

Mike, you will be forever missed and loved by everyone who got to know you. You did us all proud. You were the most kind, gentle, and loving soul we ever knew, and what was most wonderful was your positive take on everything, manifesting itself in hilarious jokes that were appreciated by all who knew you. Thank you, Mike, for being you. We love you.

Mike, you loved your grandchildren Mikaela, Sophia, Joseph, Rachel, Patrick, and Heather, and they adored you. The annual visits from all of them during the summers were what touched your heart most.

Last but by no means least, everybody felt the impact of your most generous spirit. To you, FAMILY was of paramount importance, and you, ever so gently, guided our children, including the children you taught, including undying support of my St. Ninian’s Children’s Choir for over 43 years, into being the creme-de-la-creme of society as upstanding citizens. You set the bar high, Mike, and you can take credit for positively influencing the future of all who had the privilege of knowing you. Life will never be the same without you, my dearest Mike.  You never ever thought of yourself, as you always put others first, and for this you are known as the gentlest, kindest, most unassuming soul that it was our honour and privilege to know and love. Mike, you were the creme-de-la-creme. How can we ever fill the void your absence has created?

I will end with the following quote from our much-admired fellow teacher, Eleanor Mutimer:

"I have just received the sad news that Mike’s lovely life has ended. Words cannot express my great shock and my profound sorrow at the loss of such a fine human being, such a supportive husband, such a loving and proud father and grandfather, such a wonderful colleague and friend, such a truly gentle man."

Farewell my dearest Mike, and may God keep you safe in His loving arms until we are called to be reunited with you in Heaven.

With all our love and blessings, 

Yours ever-lovingly,

Yvette, with all our family.

Online condolences:  www.clcurry.com