About Mike

Lorne VanFossen, our long-time friend and guitar player in the Big "E" Band, passed away November 3, 2012. He was part of our family, which made it difficult to say good-bye. Lorne was a cancer survivor and we were privileged the last many years to make music with him, more importantly, we are grateful to know the man Lorne was. His fellow band members (past and present) say this about him:

From Mary - He was a man of tremendous faith; humble, quiet but when he did talk, it would either be wise or mostly funny; he had beautiful blue eyes that you could see Jesus in; great father and friend.

From Joe - A quiet gentle man who turned into a magical musician when a guitar was placed in his hands.

From Jeff - A friend who was always willing to listen and offer (when asked) some sage advice; one of the most solid musicians that I have ever played with; one of a kind and a pleasure to be around; I will always remember that smile from across the stage, when something was really grooving.

From Jan - He was one of those people in your life you reserve a special place for; a shining example of integrity, humility, talent, humor, and grace under pressure, all of which came from his unwavering faith in Christ; Missed every day by me and many, many others, especially his family, of whom he was rightfully very proud. He had the effect of putting you at ease when with him, onstage and off; I will miss looking over to my left to see him onstage, knowing he was "right on" night after night; extremely consistent; a master of comedic timing-he always waited for the perfect moment to deliver one of his "dry" observations and have us all in stitches; knew the value of being a team player musician, but give him the green light and he could turn it loose!; had A LOT in reserve, knew when to use it and when not to...a very rare combination; I enjoyed our long road trips together, and he helped me thru a lot of rough times, even when he was dealing with much worse himself - THAT is the kind of person he was; a true friend; I loved him.

An article about Lorne was published in the Times Reporter on Christmas Day. Mark Puskarich, Lorne's best friend and founder of "A Christmas To Cure Cancer", was interviewed for the story and did an amazing job of honoring Lorne. You can access that article by clicking here.

As quoted in the article, "A Christmas To Cure Cancer" was formed out of the experience of Lorne's cancer battle. It is a 501c(3) nonprofit organization that "raises money for cancer research & donates the net proceeds to organizations engaged in cancer research". Contributions may be made in honor of Lorne to A Christmas To Cure Cancer, 5226 Columbine Court, Columbus, OH 43230, or visit their website at www.achristmastocurecancer.org.