Michael McGarry

Michael McGarry, 58, formerly of San Francisco, CA, passed away on Wednesday, April 30, 2025 after a courageous battle with ALS. Devoted son of Lynne McGarry. Loving brother of Maureen Zuppichini and her husband Matthew. Uncle to nephews Dante and Roman Zuppichini. Also survived by cousins Dan Lorenzo and his wife Gina, Dawn Walter, Will Haight, his aunt Carol Lorenzo and his aunt and uncle Eileen & Richard Haight.
Michael had a lifelong thirst for knowledge. He earned a BA from Harvard in Physics and a Master's from Harvard in Comparative Religion. After college, he found his calling as an educator, where his passion for teaching inspired hundreds of students over the course of three decades. A devoted scholar of spiritual studies, Mike also ran a meditation center, the East Bay Healing Collective, in his beloved Berkely, CA. To quote one of the many people whose lives he affected, "We are fortunate to have been touched by an individual singular in every possible quality. Kindness. Generosity. Intellect. Mike has taught so many so much."
Family will receive friends on Monday, May 5, 2025 from 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm at the Vander Plaat Memorial Home, 113 South Farview Avenue, Paramus, NJ. Funeral Service will be held at 9:30am on Tuesday, May 6, 2025 at the Vander Plaat Memorial Home, followed by a 10:00 am Funeral Mass at Our Lady of the Visitation R.C. Church, 234 N. Farview Ave., Paramus. Cremation will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Michael's memory may be made to ALS United Greater NY, 42 Broadway, Suite 1724, NY, NY, 10004.