Let us pray in thanksgiving for the life of Fr. Michael D. Kurimay, SJ, who died on August 25, 2025 at St. Camillus Jesuit Community in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. He was 83 years old. May he rest in peace.
Mike is preceded in death by his parents, Michael and Eleanor (nee Kovach). He is survived by his brother, Daniel Kurimay, and his sisters, Patricia Reilly and Deborah Hopper.
Mike was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on July 15, 1942. He entered the Wisconsin Province of the Society of Jesus on August 14, 1961 at the Jesuit Novitiate in St. Bonifacius, Minnesota. He was ordained on June 3, 1973 at the College of St. Thomas Community in St. Paul, Minnesota and professed final vows on August 15, 1991 at the Jesuit Community Chapel on the campus of Marquette University.
While in the Society, Mike earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and letters from Saint Louis University (1967). He earned a master’s degree in education administration from Fordham University (1978). He also earned an Ed.D. in education leadership from the University of San Francisco (1988).
During regency (1968-1970) and after ordination (1973-1978), Mike was missioned to Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha where he taught French, English, and theology. In addition, he was the assistant prefect of studies (1975-1977). After a time as an associate pastor of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Mankato, Minnesota (1979), he was missioned to be the prefect of studies and discipline at De Smet Jesuit High School in Saint Louis, Missouri (1979-1982).
In 1982, Mike left secondary education and focused his ministerial energies on higher education. He was the assistant to the academic vice-president at Creighton University (1982-1985) before teaching education at Marquette University (1988-1998) and John Carroll University (1999-2001). He then spent three years researching and writing while living in the Marquette University Jesuit Community (2001-2004). After a year performing pastoral ministry at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in St. Paul (2004-2005), Mike was missioned to the St. Camillus Jesuit in 2005 where he was an assistant to the minister (2005-2007), a pastoral minister (2006-2010), and prayed for the Church and the Society (2010-2025).
Mike was a devoted Jesuit, priest, and scholar. An educator at heart, Mike was rooted in Ignatian pedagogy and loved helping others learn especially by reflecting upon their experiences.
Fr. George Winzenburg, SJ, has this remembrance of Mike:
Mike loved literature and teaching. He had a keen intellect and a sharp wit. He was a perfectionist whose world got small in 2023 after he fell and broke his hip and later suffered a heart attack that irreversibly damaged his heart. It was the small things that happened during the day that brought him joy, including classical music, take-out pizza and Chinese food, a cocktail at five o’clock, and phone calls to his sister Deb. He was at peace knowing that he would not get better. He faced death with courage and equanimity and a desire to fall into God’s hands.
