Mourners remember Marquette President Michael Lovell's faith, energy, leadership, spirit

On Thursday, Amy Lovell stood before mourners at Church of the Gesu and remembered her husband as a man who "cared deeply for the people he served."

"He never made a decision without praying or running to clear his head," she said. "He prayed for the people his decisions would affect, and always found the good in every person he encountered."

Before, during and after Thursday's Mass of Christian Burial for Michael Lovell, people joined his wife in recalling the first lay president in the Jesuit school's 133-year history as a leader guided by profound faith, who engaged with others in a personal way, whether he was discussing their contribution to a multi-million dollar campus project or running into them on a run.

Hundreds of mourners gathered Thursday to pay their respects to Lovell, who left his mark on Milwaukee's two largest universities, and on the city itself.

He died at age 57 on June 9 in Rome after a three-year battle with cancer. The news shocked and saddened the Marquette University campus community he has led for the past decade, as well as those at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he served as chancellor from 2010 to 2014.

Amy Lovell spoke of her husband's selflessness, humility, deep faith and brilliance.

"He had a servant's heart," she said.

Acting President Kimo Ah Yun, in his eulogy, said the last Mass Lovell attended was at the Church of the Gesu in Rome, where St. Ignatius, founder of the Society of Jesus — the Jesuits — prayed. Ah Yun said Lovell's faith gave him strength through his cancer battle.

"There is no question that Mike was a disciple of God. He loved everyone, and he loved Marquette," Ah Yun said.

In the days since Lovell's sudden death while on a religious pilgrimage in Rome, Marquette has hosted a memorial run/walk, organized a prayer vigil and scattered sunflowers across campus in his memory. The sunflower is a symbol for sarcoma awareness.

Tributes have poured in across Wisconsin, painting a picture of a deeply religious man whose career began as an engineer and evolved into one of public service. Energetic and competitive, he expanded Marquette's research reach, prioritized community partnerships, and connected with the campus through a running club and innumerable other efforts.

Local leaders remember Lovell's energy, innovation

In addition to the crowd at the Church of the Gesu at Marquette, the service was livestreamed at the Al McGuire Center, where Lovell was inaugurated in 2014.

The service drew well-known figures from across Milwaukee and Wisconsin. Among those gathered were Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman, County Executive David Crowley, former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, the Marquette men's basketball team, and businessman and philanthropist Sheldon Lubar.

"It’s a great loss to our community," Lubar said. "The group of people who have contributed to the success and quality of life in Milwaukee — if there’s a top of the list, he belongs there."

More: UW-Milwaukee chancellor, others reflect on Michael Lovell's legacy at Marquette

Lubar said Lovell was instrumental in UW-Milwaukee opening its Lubar Center for Entrepreneurship. Lubar recalled flying with then-UWM chancellor Lovell to the East Coast to study another college's model for teaching entrepreneurship. Lubar was enthusiastic about replicating the idea at UWM until he learned the project's price tag.

"Mike was really the proponent," Lubar recalled. "He kept after me."

Lubar contributed $10 million, about half of the total cost. Opened in 2019, the building serves as a hub for students and regional businesses to collaborate.

Lubar also worked with Lovell in 2017 to establish the Marquette University Law School's Lubar Center for Public Police and Civic Education. The center, Lovell said at the 2017 launch, will serve as a "thought leader" and "bring people together to talk about our similarities and our differences."

Thompson praised Lovell as a “great family man, great educator, great leader, great Christian.”

Thompson recalled the moment he learned Lovell was taking the Marquette president job and leaving the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Thompson was surprised.

"It's my calling, Tommy," Lovell said. "This is the chance of a lifetime."

Norman, who got to know Lovell while on the board of Marquette University Law School, appreciated his efforts to address mental health in Milwaukee. Lovell and his wife led an effort called SWIM — Scaling Wellness In Milwaukee — to address the city's epidemic of psychological trauma.

"He was a constant force," Norman said. "He was a genuine, visible leader in our community."

Lovell was always willing to sit down, listen and have a conversation

Doug Fisher, a retired professor of supply chain management, remembers how engaged Lovell was in every meeting the two attended with Milwaukee-area business leaders.

"He wasn't a figurehead. He was there, thinking," Fisher said.

Even with his busy schedule, Lovell was always willing to sit down, listen and have a conversation about any issue, Fisher said. And he always walked away with a plan of action.

"He always brought, from a decision-making point of view, a level of honesty and dignity to it. It wasn't an agenda, it was — what is right," Fisher said. "And it was so darn refreshing."

Nkozi Knight, president of Marquette's Black Alumni Association, said Lovell came to many of the group's events. He recalled how Lovell would get emotional when he spoke about the university.

"It really came through in everything that he said, how much he loved not just the students and the university, but the community and Milwaukee as a whole," Knight said. "He really cared."

Knight noted how, after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the national racial reckoning that followed, Lovell "stepped up" and expanded the school's Urban Scholars program to provide 40 full-tuition scholarships to local high school seniors.

Those who paid their respects Thursday also remembered Lovell's optimism and kindness in smaller moments.

Antonella Larson, whose daughter went to school with Lovell's children, knew him from Holy Family Parish in Whitefish Bay. She recalled running into him on a walking path near their homes during the pandemic. He greeted her warmly with a smile and a few words; it made an impression.

His ever-present smile, she said, was "like a light."

Lovell's openness and warmth was also something that struck Kerry and Dave Hughes of Arlington Heights, Illinois. They traveled with Lovell, his family and other alumni to Italy in 2015. Since then, Lovell always remembered them and would take the time to chat with them and respond to their emails, they said.

"You could tell that he bled Marquette, and that he had a vision for where he wanted to take the university," Dave Hughes said.

That extended to a moment last year, when Kerry Hughes met with Lovell to ask if he'd speak about his cancer journey at a Medical College of Wisconsin event on rare diseases. He did so last October.

In that interaction, Kerry Hughes glimpsed Lovell's unique blend of gentleness and strength in his leadership. The next leader will have "big shoes to fill," she said, but Lovell left a mark on so many at Marquette that she isn't worried.

"He touched everybody with his spirit, everybody that he met, so I think that spirit is going to carry on," she said.

In addition to his wife Amy, Lovell leaves behind four children.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Mourners remember 'servant leadership' of Marquette's Mike Lovell