Michael Lewis was born in Chicago, IL on February 5, 1956 to Melvin Lewis and Lavergne (Doris) Lewis (nee Crockett) both of whom preceded him in death. As a child, Michael loved to play games, swim, and run on the track with his family at the local YMCA. He was always a jokester and enjoyed making his family and friends laugh.
Michael attended Frances W. Parker High School where he excelled academically, but could never quite fit into the traditional school setting. He lived his teenage years on the edge, too cool for school, and loved hanging with his crew. Always a true gentleman, dapper dresser, and fashion forward thinker he loved to dress to impress and get his hair braided and twisted by Patricia on the front porch of her home.
On his 18th birthday, he went to San Diego, California and enrolled in the United States Marine Corps. During active duty, Michael was stationed in Okinawa, Japan for two years during the Vietnam War. While serving in the US Marines he received the National Defense Service Medal and the Rifle Marksmanship Badge (M-16). He also mastered his culinary skills and learned to bake pastries. He and Patricia loved to write letters to each other and he would always tell her of the countries around the world where he wanted to take her one day. In 1977, upon being discharged from the military he returned to Chicago, IL and worked in the VA hospital while attending Triton C.T.S. Truck Driving College.
On June 3, 1978, he married his beautiful wife Patricia and to this union there were 3 children born. Their son, Michael M. Lewis and their daughters Angelica Lewis-Elueze, and Candace Lewis Ward were his pride and joy. As a family, they lived a simple life full of fun and educational activities like swimming, riding bikes on the block, walking to Foster Park, summer reading challenges, movies on the weekends, museums, and eating out at eclectic restaurants.
In the 80’s and 90’s, Michael worked as a taxi driver in Chicago’s Loop. Michael was a simple and peaceful man that took life as it came. Needless to say, he was a carefree dreamer! He enjoyed driving, meeting new people, and having lunch and taking in the sights at different parks and landmarks around the city and suburbs. He was an entrepreneur and liked repairing and fixing things, a lover of nature and architecture, and an avid reader, bike rider, and walker. Michael was passionate about education and health. He loved to share his passion about education with his children and other young people in the neighborhood. You could find him on the front porch wearing his suspenders with a chalkboard teaching math problems and sharing some knowledge about geography or music on a summer day. If you stopped to converse with him, he’d likely tell you all about the benefits of drinking herbal teas, taking wheatgrass shots, juicing your fruits and vegetables to maximize their nutrients, or saying something like ‘one garlic clove a day will keep the doctor away’. However, as Michael and all other foodies know, it is all about balance! He also loved his burgers, milkshakes, Fritos, frozen custard, and our grandma’s sweet potato pie.
In the early 2000’s, Michael spent a great deal of time living with and caring for his aunt Dorothy Moore in the Chatham neighborhood of Chicago. In 2013 he decided to pursue his love of food and passion for creativity and achieved his certification in food safety. In 2014, he began training in a culinary arts program and became a cook for Safe Haven. He found joy in learning about something he loved and helping people at the same time. Whether it was allowing someone to go ahead of him in line, helping a neighbor shovel their car out of the snow, or a simple, How do you do?, and actually stopping to listen to your response, he was always willing to take a moment out of his day to make someone else’s day better or brighter.
Michael Lewis, a spiritual man of incredible faith, a proud father and grandfather, loving husband and lifelong learner, transitioned from this earth on February 26, 2021 at the age of 65 at his home in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, IL. Michael is survived by his wife Patricia Lewis, son Michael M. Lewis, and two daughters, Angelica Lewis-Elueze (Jindu Elueze), Candace Lewis (Ryan Ward), twin brother D. Lewis, Grandson Ekene Elueze, uncle Ronald Rogers (Carmen Rogers), and a host of nieces, nephews, and cousins.
