Birth date: Feb 11, 1942 Death date: Nov 30, 2023
Richard (Coach Mal) Mallwitz (81) of Smiths Creek, died peacefully in McLaren Port Huron on Thursday, November 30, 2023 after a brief illness. He was born to Willard and Isabel (Hawker) Mallwitz on February 11, 1942. He married Ja Read Obituary
Like so many others, Mal had a huge impact on my life. I still remember and use the things I learned in Mal's speech class whenever I have to do any public speaking, and the feedback he gave me on the short story I wrote for my final project in his creative writing class changed my life.
I'm so grateful I had the chance to thank him for everything he did for me when, by chance, I saw him in the plaza in St. Clair while our class was having a reunion at Drifter's -- he even left his group to come to our party and say "hi" to everyone. What a wonderful man!
I just wanna say what a blessing. It was to have known Rich for all these years. My wife and my family to have known him and his family. I met Rich when I started teaching at St. Clair high school in 1997. I love baseball and I asked who was the baseball coach and they all pointed me to Mr. Mal. I asked him if I could help him or if I could help JV or freshman, and he took me under his wing. what was so impressive about him as a coach and a person was his patience and love of kids and he showed me that you have to be empathetic at all times. When kids would strike out or do bad in the game, I would be the one all fired up and he would just go up to the kid, put his arm around the shoulder, squeezes his neck real quick, and say you get it next time.
Whenever I talk to Rich about life‘s issues, and just things that I was going through. He was always a good person to talk to. He said some things you gotta leave to God, actually most things you have to leave to God. I didn’t really understand that until I got older but what a really good person a good mentor and friend he was to everybody he met.
I know the last time I hung out with him and Zane. It was pretty funny because when I went into the house, it looked like a bomb had hit I thought I was back at college living in a frat house or dorm room. There is leftover food everywhere, and the house was a bit of a mess and I was teasing Rich and said what’s going on around here? His reply was it’s the holidays I can do what I want and we had people over for the last 2-3 nights. He was all about family loved to see his kids, his grandchildren and anybody who show up. I just want to send my sincerest condolences to the family and all the friends who lost the kid may but in memory, he will be respected and loved.
Though I was not a student of his, Rich, by example, taught me what a "good man" is. We have unfortunately lost one of the finest.
Mike S.
Mr. Mal will always have a special place in my memories. I think back fondly of Mal as a teacher, coach and a mentor. He was a very impactful person in my young life. He provided comfort and guidance to me as I did my best to navigate high school. His kindness and care transcended the contexts in which we interacted. It did not matter if we were on the baseball field or in the classroom. Mal was always available to teach, coach and provide support. He will be missed and remembered by so many for his formative influence on our young lives. Thank you Mal.
