Michael D. Koehler was the grandson of one of America's greatest athletes, Jim Thorpe, and as a high school football star faced the inevitable comparisons.
As an All-American fullback for Mount Carmel High School who later played for the University of Nebraska, Mr. Koehler's connection to Thorpe was frequently mentioned in newspaper stories.
Mr. Koehler, 76, of Chicago, a longtime educator and coach at Deerfield High School who was also an adjunct professor of educational administration at Northeastern Illinois University's graduate school for 23 years, died of congestive heart failure Wednesday, Jan. 21, at his vacation home in Minocqua, Wis.
At Deerfield, Mr. Koehler also was a district administrator and guidance counselor.
"Mike was loved and revered by his students," said Greg Royer, a former colleague and teacher at Deerfield, now retired. "All the kids wanted him as their guidance counselor because he was the most giving person I've ever known. He was someone they really looked up to, someone they wanted to be like."
Mr. Koehler grew up on Chicago's South Side. Jim Thorpe was of Native American and European descent and lived in California. Thorpe was the first "big-name" athlete to play pro football, also played professional baseball and won gold medals in the 1912 Stockholm Olympics in the decathlon and pentathlon.
"He had vague memories of his grandfather, and most of what he knew about him came from books he read and what others would tell him," his wife said. "But as time went on the connection between him and the grandfather he never had the chance to know only got stronger. When good things would happen to him, he'd look to the sky and say, 'Thanks, gramps!' "
After graduating from Mount Carmel, Mr. Koehler played football for a year at Marquette University, until the school dropped the sport, and then transferred to Nebraska, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English.
The former longtime Mundelein resident went on to earn a master's degree in education from Northern Illinois University and later a doctorate in education from the University of Utah, his family said.
He began his teaching career at a high school in Medford, Wis., where he taught for two years. In 1965, he joined the faculty at Deerfield High School and was a teacher, assistant football coach and guidance counselor, until retiring in 1999. He was inducted into the Deerfield Hall of Fame last fall.
"After seven hours of teaching at the high school, he'd go another three hours for football practice and then leave the field to get into the city in time to teach at the university," Royer said. "That took incredible stamina, and I don't know how he kept that schedule for as long as he did."
Royer said Mr. Koehler played a critical role in helping Deerfield win the Class 5A state football championship in 1975 as the team's backfield coach.
"He was one of the reasons we were a football powerhouse," said Royer, also an assistant coach on that team. "He was a great tactician. He was the one calling most of the plays and was a master at sequencing them."
While teaching, and also later in retirement, Mr. Koehler wrote scores of educational articles and was the author or co-author of 17 books, including "A Football Coach's Survival Guide" in 1992, "Advising Student Athletes Through the College Recruitment Process: A Complete Guide for Counselors, Coaches and Parents" in 1995, "The Complete Book of Drills for Winning Football" in 2001 and "Coaching Character at Home: Strategies for raising responsible teens" in 2003.
For many years, he also contributed stories for The Spirit of '76 radio series in Chicago, which told stories about people who had contributed to the American heritage and were read on-air by the late John Doremus, a well-known radio host.
"He'd often say what a blessing it was to have had that job with the radio station," his wife said. "Not only was it fun, but it helped pay for our children's college tuition, and that, along with their love, meant everything to him."
Mr. Koehler also is survived by three daughters, a brother, and three grandchildren.
As an All-American fullback for Mount Carmel High School who later played for the University of Nebraska, Mr. Koehler's connection to Thorpe was frequently mentioned in newspaper stories.
Mr. Koehler, 76, of Chicago, a longtime educator and coach at Deerfield High School who was also an adjunct professor of educational administration at Northeastern Illinois University's graduate school for 23 years, died of congestive heart failure Wednesday, Jan. 21, at his vacation home in Minocqua, Wis.
At Deerfield, Mr. Koehler also was a district administrator and guidance counselor.
"Mike was loved and revered by his students," said Greg Royer, a former colleague and teacher at Deerfield, now retired. "All the kids wanted him as their guidance counselor because he was the most giving person I've ever known. He was someone they really looked up to, someone they wanted to be like."
Mr. Koehler grew up on Chicago's South Side. Jim Thorpe was of Native American and European descent and lived in California. Thorpe was the first "big-name" athlete to play pro football, also played professional baseball and won gold medals in the 1912 Stockholm Olympics in the decathlon and pentathlon.
"He had vague memories of his grandfather, and most of what he knew about him came from books he read and what others would tell him," his wife said. "But as time went on the connection between him and the grandfather he never had the chance to know only got stronger. When good things would happen to him, he'd look to the sky and say, 'Thanks, gramps!' "
After graduating from Mount Carmel, Mr. Koehler played football for a year at Marquette University, until the school dropped the sport, and then transferred to Nebraska, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English.
The former longtime Mundelein resident went on to earn a master's degree in education from Northern Illinois University and later a doctorate in education from the University of Utah, his family said.
He began his teaching career at a high school in Medford, Wis., where he taught for two years. In 1965, he joined the faculty at Deerfield High School and was a teacher, assistant football coach and guidance counselor, until retiring in 1999. He was inducted into the Deerfield Hall of Fame last fall.
"After seven hours of teaching at the high school, he'd go another three hours for football practice and then leave the field to get into the city in time to teach at the university," Royer said. "That took incredible stamina, and I don't know how he kept that schedule for as long as he did."
Royer said Mr. Koehler played a critical role in helping Deerfield win the Class 5A state football championship in 1975 as the team's backfield coach.
"He was one of the reasons we were a football powerhouse," said Royer, also an assistant coach on that team. "He was a great tactician. He was the one calling most of the plays and was a master at sequencing them."
While teaching, and also later in retirement, Mr. Koehler wrote scores of educational articles and was the author or co-author of 17 books, including "A Football Coach's Survival Guide" in 1992, "Advising Student Athletes Through the College Recruitment Process: A Complete Guide for Counselors, Coaches and Parents" in 1995, "The Complete Book of Drills for Winning Football" in 2001 and "Coaching Character at Home: Strategies for raising responsible teens" in 2003.
For many years, he also contributed stories for The Spirit of '76 radio series in Chicago, which told stories about people who had contributed to the American heritage and were read on-air by the late John Doremus, a well-known radio host.
"He'd often say what a blessing it was to have had that job with the radio station," his wife said. "Not only was it fun, but it helped pay for our children's college tuition, and that, along with their love, meant everything to him."
Mr. Koehler also is survived by three daughters, a brother, and three grandchildren.
Michael D. Koehler was the grandson of one of America's greatest athletes, Jim Thorpe, and as a high school football star faced the inevitable comparisons.
As an All-American fullback for Mount Carmel High School who later played for the University of Nebraska, Mr. Koehler's connection to Thorpe was frequently mentioned in newspaper stories.
Mr. Koehler, 76, of Chicago, a longtime educator and coach at Deerfield High School who was also an adjunct professor of educational administration at Northeastern Illinois University's graduate school for 23 years, died of congestive heart failure Wednesday, Jan. 21, at his vacation home in Minocqua, Wis.
At Deerfield, Mr. Koehler also was a district administrator and guidance counselor.
"Mike was loved and revered by his students," said Greg Royer, a former colleague and teacher at Deerfield, now retired. "All the kids wanted him as their guidance counselor because he was the most giving person I've ever known. He was someone they really looked up to, someone they wanted to be like."
Mr. Koehler grew up on Chicago's South Side. Jim Thorpe was of Native American and European descent and lived in California. Thorpe was the first "big-name" athlete to play pro football, also played professional baseball and won gold medals in the 1912 Stockholm Olympics in the decathlon and pentathlon.
"He had vague memories of his grandfather, and most of what he knew about him came from books he read and what others would tell him," his wife said. "But as time went on the connection between him and the grandfather he never had the chance to know only got stronger. When good things would happen to him, he'd look to the sky and say, 'Thanks, gramps!' "
After graduating from Mount Carmel, Mr. Koehler played football for a year at Marquette University, until the school dropped the sport, and then transferred to Nebraska, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English.
The former longtime Mundelein resident went on to earn a master's degree in education from Northern Illinois University and later a doctorate in education from the University of Utah, his family said.
He began his teaching career at a high school in Medford, Wis., where he taught for two years. In 1965, he joined the faculty at Deerfield High School and was a teacher, assistant football coach and guidance counselor, until retiring in 1999. He was inducted into the Deerfield Hall of Fame last fall.
"After seven hours of teaching at the high school, he'd go another three hours for football practice and then leave the field to get into the city in time to teach at the university," Royer said. "That took incredible stamina, and I don't know how he kept that schedule for as long as he did."
Royer said Mr. Koehler played a critical role in helping Deerfield win the Class 5A state football championship in 1975 as the team's backfield coach.
"He was one of the reasons we were a football powerhouse," said Royer, also an assistant coach on that team. "He was a great tactician. He was the one calling most of the plays and was a master at sequencing them."
While teaching, and also later in retirement, Mr. Koehler wrote scores of educational articles and was the author or co-author of 17 books, including "A Football Coach's Survival Guide" in 1992, "Advising Student Athletes Through the College Recruitment Process: A Complete Guide for Counselors, Coaches and Parents" in 1995, "The Complete Book of Drills for Winning Football" in 2001 and "Coaching Character at Home: Strategies for raising responsible teens" in 2003.
For many years, he also contributed stories for The Spirit of '76 radio series in Chicago, which told stories about people who had contributed to the American heritage and were read on-air by the late John Doremus, a well-known radio host.
"He'd often say what a blessing it was to have had that job with the radio station," his wife said. "Not only was it fun, but it helped pay for our children's college tuition, and that, along with their love, meant everything to him."
Mr. Koehler also is survived by three daughters, a brother, and three grandchildren.
As an All-American fullback for Mount Carmel High School who later played for the University of Nebraska, Mr. Koehler's connection to Thorpe was frequently mentioned in newspaper stories.
Mr. Koehler, 76, of Chicago, a longtime educator and coach at Deerfield High School who was also an adjunct professor of educational administration at Northeastern Illinois University's graduate school for 23 years, died of congestive heart failure Wednesday, Jan. 21, at his vacation home in Minocqua, Wis.
At Deerfield, Mr. Koehler also was a district administrator and guidance counselor.
"Mike was loved and revered by his students," said Greg Royer, a former colleague and teacher at Deerfield, now retired. "All the kids wanted him as their guidance counselor because he was the most giving person I've ever known. He was someone they really looked up to, someone they wanted to be like."
Mr. Koehler grew up on Chicago's South Side. Jim Thorpe was of Native American and European descent and lived in California. Thorpe was the first "big-name" athlete to play pro football, also played professional baseball and won gold medals in the 1912 Stockholm Olympics in the decathlon and pentathlon.
"He had vague memories of his grandfather, and most of what he knew about him came from books he read and what others would tell him," his wife said. "But as time went on the connection between him and the grandfather he never had the chance to know only got stronger. When good things would happen to him, he'd look to the sky and say, 'Thanks, gramps!' "
After graduating from Mount Carmel, Mr. Koehler played football for a year at Marquette University, until the school dropped the sport, and then transferred to Nebraska, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English.
The former longtime Mundelein resident went on to earn a master's degree in education from Northern Illinois University and later a doctorate in education from the University of Utah, his family said.
He began his teaching career at a high school in Medford, Wis., where he taught for two years. In 1965, he joined the faculty at Deerfield High School and was a teacher, assistant football coach and guidance counselor, until retiring in 1999. He was inducted into the Deerfield Hall of Fame last fall.
"After seven hours of teaching at the high school, he'd go another three hours for football practice and then leave the field to get into the city in time to teach at the university," Royer said. "That took incredible stamina, and I don't know how he kept that schedule for as long as he did."
Royer said Mr. Koehler played a critical role in helping Deerfield win the Class 5A state football championship in 1975 as the team's backfield coach.
"He was one of the reasons we were a football powerhouse," said Royer, also an assistant coach on that team. "He was a great tactician. He was the one calling most of the plays and was a master at sequencing them."
While teaching, and also later in retirement, Mr. Koehler wrote scores of educational articles and was the author or co-author of 17 books, including "A Football Coach's Survival Guide" in 1992, "Advising Student Athletes Through the College Recruitment Process: A Complete Guide for Counselors, Coaches and Parents" in 1995, "The Complete Book of Drills for Winning Football" in 2001 and "Coaching Character at Home: Strategies for raising responsible teens" in 2003.
For many years, he also contributed stories for The Spirit of '76 radio series in Chicago, which told stories about people who had contributed to the American heritage and were read on-air by the late John Doremus, a well-known radio host.
"He'd often say what a blessing it was to have had that job with the radio station," his wife said. "Not only was it fun, but it helped pay for our children's college tuition, and that, along with their love, meant everything to him."
Mr. Koehler also is survived by three daughters, a brother, and three grandchildren.
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