Obituary of Michael L. Garvin

Michael Lee Garvin died on November 28, 2016, at St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He was 65. He was born on January 9, 1951, in Wayne, Nebraska, to Betty and Lyle Garvin. He resided in North Liberty, Iowa. He is survived by his wife Bonnie, his twin daughters Katherine and Elizabeth, mother and father-in-law Lillian and Louis Winslow (Belle Plaine, IA), brother Pat Garvin and his wife Liz (Wayne, NE), sisters Linda Garvin and her husband Bill Boyton (USVI) and Joanie Garvin and partner Russ Sellhorst (Spokane, WA), brother-in-law Doug Winslow (Coralville, IA), and sister-in-law and husband Francine and Harlan Lemke (Dows, IA), nieces and nephews, and many, many friends too numerous to mention. Michael graduated from St. Mary’s Elementary School in Wayne and from high school at St. John Vianney Seminary in Elkhorn, Nebraska in 1969 (currently Mount Michael). He received his B.A. from Benedictine College in Kansas (1973) and his M.A. from St. Louis University (1979). He married Bonnie Winslow on July 10, 1993 in Iowa City. His career began as a hospital administrator serving in that capacity at St. Mary’s Healthcare Center in St. Louis, Missouri (1979-82), as Regulatory and Environmental Compliance Director at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Health Care Campus (1982-1990), and Safety Engineer and Compliance Officer for the University of Iowa Medical Center (1990-2002). He was vice-president of AudioNet Corporation (1994-1998) and a Technology Transfer Specialist at the University of Iowa (1995-2000). He has served as an adjunct professor of Entrepreneurial Studies at the John Pappajohn Center of Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Iowa (1995-2000), as well as a visiting professor at the Gerdin College of Business at Iowa State University (1996-1998). He was president of Simulation Education Services from 1998-2006 and most recently held the position of president at RENAIS LLC, as well as Garvin Consulting Services. Through RENAIS he worked to present techniques for reducing carbon emissions into the environment and was a sought out lecturer on this topic. He had plans for many more large projects and put his heart and soul into each one. He is the author of Infectious Waste Management: A Practical Guide. Michael attended the First United Methodist Church where he has served as a lay minister. He was an avid golfer and kayaker and loved to play chess and ride horses especially with his daughter Katherine and to do art, share music and write with his daughter Elizabeth. Although he never fully grasped all of the rules of soccer, he was an enthusiastic coach of Katherine and Elizabeth’s AYSO soccer team. He was a sculptor, poet, carver, magician, calligrapher, public speaker, encourager of all and an Irish storyteller who always had a twinkle in his eye. His laugh was contagious. He was inventive and had a knack for thinking out of the box not only in his business endeavors but also in all that he did. He made everyone he met feel special. His favorite nicknames were Magic Man and Farmer Pickle. Visitation will be held from 4:00 – 6:30 p.m. on Friday, December 2, 2016, at the First United Methodist Church in North Liberty. The funeral service will follow at 6:30 p.m. The church is located at 85 North Jones Blvd. Interment will be privately held the next day. Funeral arrangements are being made with Gay and Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service. Call 319-338-1132 with questions.