Friends and family,

It is finally time to celebrate the very full life of Mr. Michael, Mike, Mikey Munch. He'd love the idea of us gathering and reminiscing with tasty food, photos, and stories. He sure loved a good story! All are welcome to join.

SERVICE:
Date: Saturday, June 25th, 2022
Time: 11 – 1145am
St. Peter's Lutheran Church
910 Amos St
Humboldt, KS 66748

GRAVESIDE: 
Date: Saturday, June 25th, 2022
Time: 12pm
National Guard gun salute and military Chaplain
1282 Hawaii Rd
Humboldt, KS 66748

LUNCH: 
Date: Saturday, June 25th, 2022
Following graveside service, we will return to St. Peter’s Lutheran Church

EVENING SOCIAL:
Date: Saturday, June 25th, 2022
Time: TBD
Holiday Inn Express
3401 Blue Comet Drive
Chanute, KS 66720

LIVE STREAM: Details forthcoming

NEAREST AIRPORT: Kansas City International Airport

HOTEL RECOMMENDATION: 
Holiday Inn Express
3401 Blue Comet Drive, Chanute, KS 66720
(620) 431-0817
Group Discount Code: Munch Family

ATTIRE: Please come as casual and comfortable as you like. 

Thank you for your prayers, love, and support. We have felt your embrace.

Michael Munch's Celebration of Life

Tana Rucker

Mike Munch

Turner Munch

Cody Barnes

Joan Trafecanty

Shannon Dux

The Man Who Could Move the Moon: An Obituary for Michael Lee Munch
By: Turner Munch (son)
Michael Lee Munch passed away on Saturday, January 30th, 2021, at the age of 68, twelve days after suffering a stroke. He died peacefully while his beloved wife Joan and his daughter Cody were at his bedside, inside Loma Linda University Medical Center. The rest of his adoring family were with him virtually as he passed.
Many years ago, while driving with his kids in the backseat, Mike would look up through the window into the night, “Kids, it’s time for a magic trick. Are you ready?” he would ask. “YES!” we’d reply. “Alright, see the full moon on the left side of the car? Well, get a good look at it because I’m going to move the moon!”. We weren’t convinced, “You’ll see. Now close your eyes.” We did as we were told until, “Alright, open them!”. We would all wow in amazement at the moon which was now behind the car in the sky instead of on the left! None of us thought to question the movement of the car as Dad made a right turn while our eyes were closed. All we could do was look on with wonder. That is who Michael Munch was to his family, a provider of wonderment and much much more.
Michael was born in Chanute, Kansas to Bob and Venora Munch.  Growing up in Humboldt, he was one of five children, Cheryl, Lisa and Colleen and one brother Steven. As a kid Michael enjoyed gathering pecans with his sisters so they could sell bags outside their parents’ general store. This was also, most likely, the root of his endless love for pecan pie. Some of his favorite teen memories were living with his Aunt Jan and playing various sports in high school including basketball, baseball and football. Mike loved to tell stories about football practices and did so all the way into his years as a Grandparent. He told how Frank Hemphill decided Mike should try playing defensive back. The way he described the play was priceless, including how he was steamrolled trying to stop a screen pass. While he struggled to his knees—looking out the ear hole of his helmet—the play reversed, and he got knocked flat again!  The dry way Mike narrated this story had people falling out of their seats with laughter every time, this story and countless others.
He loved the beach and the ocean throughout the rest of his days. Later in life, he even managed to help save a beached dolphin and help ease it back into the sea.
In 1972, Michael enlisted in the US Army in anticipation of the draft. He had a strong desire to fund college through the G.I. bill. Mike became a Military Police dog handler and was stationed in Korea. While there, his mother’s health began to rapidly decline. He was then transferred to Chatsworth on compassionate leave to be with her as she passed.
He loved to fish. At every point in his life, no matter how different from the last, he found a way to weave fishing into his life fabric. When close to a body of water, big or small, he was wondering what kind of fish you could hook on the line and endlessly contemplating the right bait. He also, according to many, was a little overconfident in his fishing abilities. He would not admit it, but his wife Joan may have shown him a thing or two about real fishing.
The Munch’s and Morrells will always treasure their holidays with Mike, especially Thanksgiving. Traditional dinner, wearing a turkey hat on our heads, expressing what we were most grateful for that year, hearing him tell a funny story and ultimately watching "Christmas Vacation” and enduring Mike’s Christmas Vacation trivia. He loved trivia and equally enjoyed stumping us. Although, sometimes he would ask trivia questions that even he forgot the answer to.
After retirement and a lifetime of supporting his family, Michael rediscovered one of his favorite pastimes, woodcarving. Finally, after leaving the working world he was able to express his creative side and show the world what was underneath. His longstanding appreciation for nature and wildlife ultimately became his muses for carvings. Everyone knew he loved the outdoors and he showed that to infinity with his art. He sold numerous finely-carved and crafted pieces of whales, dolphins, other animals and objects – a true talent. Had he carved earlier in life, he would have created many more stunning works for the world to see.
Michael was born to be a grandfather. Known affectionately to the grandkids as "Papa", he always hoped for enough grandchildren to field a family baseball team and always wanted as many gathered as possible.  As the ultimate grandpa, he devoted time to each grandchild and their interests. He made a true effort to take time for each and every one of them, to take them on adventures to do something of interest to them. Of course, if they did not have an idea of what they wanted to do, fishing was always a fine backup plan. When the kids asked to do something, Papa always said yes.
He was so many things to himself and to others, but the unanimous quality was that Michael Munch was an ultimate caregiver. He cared so much and would truly do anything for everyone around him. He had an endless thirst for helping his loved ones, purely selfless. He had an irreplaceable radiation of love for those he cared about and an unmatched dedication to his family. He will live on through the memories that we all carry, having shared some incredible moments by his side.
He leaves behind his wife of 37 years, Joan Trafecanty, his children Tana (son-in-law Brent, grandchildren Alexa and Mason), Shannon (son-in-law Steve, grandsons Andres and Isaiah), Jamie (son-in-law JC, grandson Cameron), Cody (son-in law Josh, grandsons Dax and Owen) and Turner, his siblings Cheryl, Steven, Lisa and Colleen. He is preceded in death by his parents Bob and Venora. Mike enters his next journey loved, missed and forever remembered.
He’s up there now looking down on us, waiting until we close our eyes so he can move the moon for us once more.

My Papa's Obituary
By: Alexa Perkins, age 10 (granddaughter)
Michael Lee Munch, my wonderful grandfather, was a good man. He had a big heart for all of his children and grandchildren. The love that he gave made all of our dreams come true; We are very blessed to have him in our lives.
First of all, He was a great family member, and a great friend. He was funny, kind, and always made time for his family, which he loved most out of anything. He had his wife, Joan, his children, Tana, Shannon, Cody, Turner, and Jamie. They meant the world to him, so he always had time for them, and his grandchildren.
He never said no to anywhere us grandkids wanted to go that is really fun. We usually asked for the children's museum, because that was the absolute #1 place to go with our oh so loved Papa. If I could give him a reward, It would be the number one grandpa award.
Second of all, he had a great personality. He gave unconditional love, no matter what things we went through with him. He was also very creative and artistic. He was a very good artist.  He carved wood and stone, also built things, like a wonderful, huge craft cabinet (He made me one). He was also very funny. He made everyone laugh when he came over.
Mike loved nothing more than spending a day out fishing with his family. It is always fun when we get to fish with Papa.  It is now one of my favorite hobbies because he taught me how to fish and he was always happy to spend a day out fishing with us. I am glad that he taught me how to fish.
Papa always had fun when we were together. It was the best thing ever to run down to him at the airport, him ready for a big squeeze with his big, loving smile. He had always been one of the nicest people I know.
His wife, Joan, always helped him, and she always had his back.  And I will always know, their love will never die.
Michael Lee Munch was a great man. He loved us with every part of his heart, was funny, and always had fun. We love him, and that will never change. Even though he left this world, I know that he will always love us.
Alexa Perkins, Age 10

When words can't fully express what we want to say, sometimes a small gift can. Visit our Memorial Store for personalized gifts, keepsake jewelry and to plant a memorial tree.

We use cookies to improve your browsing experience and analyze site traffic.
<privacyLink>Privacy Policy</privacyLink>.

<firstParagraph>We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze how you use this website, store your preferences, and provide the content and advertisements that are relevant to you. These cookies will only be stored in your browser with your prior consent.</firstParagraph><secondParagraph>You can choose to enable or disable some or all of these cookies but disabling some of them may affect your browsing experience.</secondParagraph>

<firstParagraph>We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.</firstParagraph><secondParagraph>The cookies that are categorized as 'Necessary' are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site.</secondParagraph>

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.

Analytics

Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.

Functional

Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.

Necessary

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

Performance

Customize Cookie Preferences

Verification Successful!

New Message

The following files could not be uploaded

Ways you can honor {memorialName}'s memory:

Donation Link

Upcoming Event

Featured Mementos

Welcome Message

Select an item to highlight

Add a highlighted item

Customize which items you’d like to highlight on the memorial

Create Account

Become a Keeper

As a free {brandName} user, you will only be able to make 5 photos and videos public.

As a free {brandName} user, only the first five (5) Mementos are visible to page visitors. You can change which Mementos are public by dragging and dropping a photo or video to one of the first five positions. Upgrading to {brandName} Plus will make all 10 Mementos selected visible to the public.

All Mementos

This option is only available to Keeper Plus users.

To allow yourself and the rest of the community to view all images and videos, and to enable everyone to download their own copy of these mementos, upgrade your account to Keeper Plus.

This memento is not visible to visitors

Your community has posted {itemCount} more pictures and videos that honor {firstName}'s memory. To view them all, and to enable everyone to download their own copy of each, this account will need to upgrade to Keeper Plus.

View all images and videos with Keeper Plus

Our Obituary Assistant helps you craft a meaningful life story in minutes. Review and edit every detail, and unlock more features with Keeper Plus.

Obituary Assistant

Spend as much time as you need working on your Memorial page before it is visible to the public, and much more, when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Save Page as Draft

Create unlimited event pages and unlock a suite of powerful features to help you seamlessly coordinate event details, invites, and more when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Event

Create a full picture of your loved one’s community and add unlimited family and friends to Loved Ones when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Loved One

Create unlimited Memorials — and unlock unlimited images and videos, event pages, and advanced privacy settings — to help you keep memories alive when you upgrade to Keeper Plus.

Memorial Page

Add unlimited Stories to highlight the all the things that made your loved one unique, from milestones, images, albums, documents, locations, and much more.

Highlight Stories

Upgrading to Keeper Plus means you can add additional Keepers to help you gather Mementos and tributes, approve content, build out a family tree, and tell {firstName}' story on Keeper.

Invite Keepers with Keeper Plus

Upload and display unlimited photos and videos, use unlimited Story templates to highlight key moments, and allow friends and family to download their own copies when you upgrade to Keeper Plus. 

Better Mementos with Keeper Plus

To access memorial related configurations that control the display of the banner upgrade to Keeper Plus.

This configuration  is not available on your current plan

Create a meaningful link path to add a personal touch to {firstName}'s memorial.

Custom Memorial link

Gift Messages

SENDING AS A GIFT?

Cart

About 1-800 Flowers

"Flowers were beautiful and they arrived in time before the funeral. Thank you and will purchase more in the future.!"

Hearing Tears

"Beautiful flowers, I've always enjoyed sending them to my love ones for sympathy and they have always love them very much Thanks for making people feel good when receiving them."

Sympathy

"This was true to the photo and good to know family took arrangement after the service."

Beautiful arrangement.  Perfect size for service.

Some of the great things our customers say about us

We're here to make it a little easier, with thoughtful gifts for the services & home, along with expert advice on how to be there during a difficult time.

Flowers

Gift Baskets

Express Your Deepest Sympathy

About Us

Perfect Condolence Gift

No one is meant to grieve alone

Peace and love

Product is made, packaged, and sent with love

Keepsakes

How to add your gift message

Packaging Information

Shipping information

Add a Personalized Charm to the Ornament:

Other Keepsakes

Install KeeperQR onto any headstone, urn, or other memorial in minutes.

Install

Use your phone or tablet to scan the unique code — no other tools required!

Scan

All three of our elegant KeeperQR designs are printed using durable, weather-resistant aluminum designed for indoors and outdoor use on headstones and urns, memorial benches and trees, or other monuments to your loved one’s life

Built to Last

Get <discount>50% off</discount> Keeper Plus with your KeeperQR purchase

Keeper Basic

Learn About Our Plans

Connect the physical and digital worlds to share your loved one’s life story with friends and family, no matter where they are.

KeeperQR Memorial QR Code Plaques

Planting a memorial tree or bereavement tree is a unique, environmentally conscious way to pay tribute and honor the memory of your loved one. Keeper Memorials is supporting American Forests to plant whitebark pine trees as well as thornscrub trees in select regions of the US and Canada.

Memorial Trees

KeeperQR is designed to pair seamlessly with a Keeper digital memorial. Use our FREE intuitive tools to create biographies, maps, and timelines, share photos and videos, and more with customizable features built to commemorate your loved one’s life’s story.

Powered by Keeper

Lifetime without any hidden costs or subscription traps

One time payment

Keeper is SOC2 compliant, keeping your memories safe and secure.

Data protection guaranteed

We bring your QR Codes to any corner of the globe

Worldwide Shipping

Our durable and beautiful QR code plaques create seamless connection between your loved one’s physical memorial and their digital memorial, allowing visitors to their final resting place instant access to their life legacy.

Memorial.

Honor their memory, share their story

A KeeperQR is a weather-resistant plaque with a custom QR code that links directly to your loved one’s digital memorial. When placed on a headstone, urn, bench, or tree, it allows friends and family to scan and view their life story instantly

What is a KeeperQR?

They’re built to withstand outdoor elements and adhere to most surfaces.

Where can I place the KeeperQR?

How does it work?

Frequently asked questions

KeeperQR

E-Certificate Design

Plant Memorial Trees as a Living Tribute

BRAZIL

CANADA

FLORIDA

OREGON

Memorial Project Reach

Memorial trees start at {price} per tree, with discounts for multiple trees

Our Commitment

Gift Baskets & Food

Keeper Plus

QR Plaques

Keepers Featured Products

A Greener Way to Remember

Learn about our Partners:

Help Us Complete Your Order

Remembrance Store

Through your unique link, your client can sign up for Keeper and create a Memorial for a loved one. When the Memorial page is completed by the family, it will appear on your microsite and website. You will be the main Keeper Administrator of the Memorial, along with the family member that created the page.

Invite Your Clients to Create a Memorial

Invite Families

Your Email Notifications

Notifications

Email Unsubscribe Settings

Other Settings

With your active Keeper PLUS subscription, you get unlimited access to a suite of powerful features:

Allow visitors to download a local copy of all images and videos.

Download Media

Create a custom and meaningful URL, unique to your loved one, for each Memorial page.

Editable URL

Plan public or private events and invite your loved ones.

Event Pages

Add images and create profile pages to illustrate the history and genealogy of your loved one.

Family Tree

Invite unlimited administrators to help you manage every Memorial page you have.

Keeper Administrators

Visitors enjoy unrestricted access to all uploaded images and videos.

Unlimited Media

Create unlimited Memorial pages for your loved ones.

Memorial Pages

You will be able to upload Full HD videos instead of embedded links.

Video Uploading

Your Profile

Add a business user

Edit a business user

Are you sure you want to delete these users from these brands? You will need to manually add these users again.

If the user is a part of multiple brands, you will have to delete the user from each one individually

Delete Users from Brands?

Users Settings & Notifications

Users

Are you sure you want to delete these users? This action will revoke their privileges across all brands.

Are you sure you want to delete this user? This action will revoke their privileges across all brands.

Delete Users from all Brands?

Delete User from Brand?

Are you sure you want to delete {totalDeletes} from this user?

Delete Roles from this User?

Are you sure you want to delete this user from this brand? You will need to manually add this user again.

Delete User from this Brand?

Requires users to confirm their email every time they would like to share a tribute on a Memorial page.

When Email Tribute Validation is turned OFF, Guest users do not need to confirm their email address before their tribute is published.

When Email Tribute Validation is turned ON, Guest users will need to confirm their email address before their tribute is published. They will receive an email with a confirmation link they must click.

Requires users to confirm their email only the first time they would like to share a tribute on a Memorial page.

Email Tribute Validation

If Flagged Content is turned OFF, content that has been flagged will remain public until they have been Approved or Removed from the Requests Center.

If Flagged Content is turned ON, content that has been flagged will be hidden until they have been Approved or Removed from the Requests Center.

Hide Flagged Content

Language

Email Notifications

Are you sure you want to delete the Memorial for {name}? This action will permanently remove the memorial from the system.

Delete Memorial?

When Memorial Request Moderation is turned OFF, Memorials will automatically be published.

When Memorial Request Moderation is turned ON, Memorials will only be published if and when you approve them. Memorials can be published or deleted in the Requests center.

Memorial Request Moderation

Moderation Settings

This will permanently delete your account. The business account, and business page will not be deleted. To deactivate your account, there must be another admin user assigned to your organization.

Are you sure you want to deactivate this account?

When Override Tribute Moderation is turned OFF, the tribute moderation settings on Memorial pages will be hidden and other Keepers cannot override the tribute moderation settings specified by your organization.

When Override Tribute Moderation is turned ON, other Keepers can view and change the tribute moderation settings of the Memorial pages they manage. (Each Memorial page will default to the organization’s tribute moderation setting upon creation.) 

Override Tribute Moderation

If the AI Content Moderation is OFF, text areas containing profane language will be published.  Tributes can however be flagged and removed at any time.

If the AI Content Moderation is ON, text areas containing profane language will not be published and the user will receive an error message.

Mike Munch Obituary | Keeper Memorials