Michael Thomas Mole

1940 - 2021

Michael Thomas Mole, 80, of NY (Manhattan), NY, passed away on Tuesday, April 20, at Mt. Sinai Hospital.

Mike was born in Pittsfield, MA, on December 6, 1940, the son of Joseph Paul Mole and Rosa Teresa Edda Mole. He attended local schools and graduated from Pittsfield High School (class of '58) and University of Massachusetts (class of '62). Mike was an incredible athlete - he played basketball and baseball for Pittsfield High School, played baseball on the American Legion baseball team and played basketball for the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) (was number 10) and was co-captain and star of the team in his senior year with his close friend, Kirk Leslie. After graduating from UMass, Mike married Carol Ann Madison of Pittsfield, joined the US Air Force, where he served his country honorably, and then settled with his family on Long Island, NY. Mike was a Procurement Manager/Contract Administrator for major design-build transit projects. He worked for Grumman, Con Ed, Ebasco, and PACO Group. Mike married Helen-Lee Stevens in July 1996.

Mike leaves his wife of 25 years, Helen-Lee Stevens Mole; his very special pug, Lila; his daughter, Stephanie Argilan and her husband, John, and grandchildren, Erica and Julia, his daughter, Kristen Kroeze and her husband Roger, and grandchildren, Lizzie and Charlie; his sister, Patricia Tyer and her husband, Jay (and his nieces and nephews, Christine Course (Al), Jeff Tyer (Trish), Cathy Bullard (Brad) and Phillip Tyer (Teri)), his brother Steve and his wife, Noreen (and his nephews, Jessie and Kyle Mole), his sister Terry Walsh and her husband, Robert (and his nieces, Sarah Bousquet and Tess Bousquet (Jason Macaleer)), his nephew Jimmy Mole (son of brother Joe, who predeceased Michael; father of Ashley Mole; husband of Tina Anello Mole) and his sister- and brother-in-law, Lisa and Andrew Brotmann (and nieces and nephew, Alison, Emily and Eric). Mike also leaves behind cousins Beverly Richmany, Joan Goddeau (Bill), Angelo Valle, Carol Santangelo (David Hunt), Frank Santangelo, Jr. (Ruthann), Richard Mole (Pam Biasotti), John Mole (Elaine), Janice Crossley, Judy Callahan, Mike Mole (Christie) and many second cousins. Mike grew up in a very tight knit family (his father was one of eight children) and loved to participate in the annual Mole Family Picnic on Onota Lake with all of his extended family, a yearly tradition since 1954. Mike is also preceded in death by his in-laws, Katie and Sonny Stevens, with whom he had a very special bond. He enjoyed many years of golfing with them at their retirement home in Myrtle Beach, SC.

Mike had a life-long love of sports and was a gifted athlete. He was a talented baseball and basketball player (spending much time as a child at Clapp Park and the Boys Club of Pittsfield, to hone his skills) and loved golf. Derek Gentile wrote an amazing article about Mike, in the Sunday 28 January 2001 Berkshire Eagle ("Pittsfield High's Mole Had Own Special Style") that described Mike's many talents. As Mr. Gentile wrote, "Mike Mole's middle name wasn't "Smooth", but it should have been." Mike was a second baseman and backcourtman for Pittsfield High School from 1956-59. As a baseball player, Mike's Babe Ruth team won the state championship in 1955. Mike was the team's best pitcher and the leading batter in the league, with a stunning mark of .560. In HS, Mike played second base for Pittsfield HS and the American Legion team. On the courts, as a HS freshman, Mike was the leading scorer and rebounder in the Boys' Club Junior League, as his team, National Supply, went unbeaten in 1955. Mike set a league scoring mark of 38 points in one game. Mike was a star on the PHS jayvees in 1955-56 and moved into a starting position for varsity the next year. During the 1957-58 basketball season, Pittsfield's record was 19-1. Mike Kinne ,All-Berkshire at guard that year, with Mole, said, "He was a guy who had tremendous ballhandling skills. I think in those days high school players weren't as polished as they are now. They were crude, really. But Mike's skills were as good or better than anyone today." Dick Gentile - "Mole copped every honor on the table, including Berkshire County MVP, Western Mass MVP and all-Western Mass. honors. He won the Tom Curtin Award at PHS, given to the best all-around athlete in school who also possessed scholastic excellence." Mike was heavily recruited by many colleges and chose University of Massachusetts. The Minutemen won the Springfield College tournament in Mike's sophomore and junior years and in his senior year (with Mike as co-captain of the team with Kirk Leslie), UMass broke through to win the Yankee Conference and win a berth to the 1962 NCAA tournament. This was the first NCAA team ever fielded by UMass and UMass wouldn't send another team to the NCAA tournament for thirty more years! Various sportswriters during Mike's HS and college years gave him nicknames, such as Marvelous Mike, Mighty Mike the Mighty Mite, Magnificent Mike, the Splendid Mole-cule and Magic Mike. Mike, along with his best friend, Kirk Leslie, was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame on August 8, 2015.

Mike loved New York City and NYC loved Mike! He lived in a close knit neighborhood across from the World Trade Center on the Hudson River. He enjoyed all the City had to offer, especially visiting all the eclectic and diverse neighborhoods from uptown to downtown - grocery shopping in Little Italy, hitting golf balls at Chelsea Piers, enjoying restaurants in Tribeca, Greenwich Village and Soho and shopping with his wife, Helen-Lee, on Fifth Avenue and the Upper East side. You name it, he loved it. But, Mike was always at his best when showing his family or friends from out of town "the sites", tailoring his itinerary to the things they liked best. When his two daughters visited with the grandchildren - we all knew we would be in for a weekend of fun! He played golf in Brooklyn and the Bronx, (he would just throw his clubs in a car and go). In his younger years, he would play basketball in the neighborhood with his buddy, always hoping a young guy would show up to challenge them. There was nothing Mike enjoyed more than taking his dog, a black pug Lila (and fawn pug Duchess before), on long walks along the Hudson or watching the sunset as boats sailed by his apartment window, gliding past the Statue of Liberty. One of his neighborhood friends commented, "there was nobody as well liked or who had a stronger spirit". That will always be the Mike we love and remember...now and forever!

A celebration of life will be held at a later date.