Everyone wanted to be "Mike’s little brother" Thursday afternoon at St.

Friday, June 23, 2000

Everyone wanted to be "Mike’s little brother" Thursday afternoon at St. Augustine Catholic Church in Austin.

At least, it seemed that way.

The Honorable Michael H. Seibel, 49, was eulogized with laughter, songs and tears in an ecumenical service, involving a Roman Catholic priest, a Methodist minister and a Jewish rabbi.

So much respect and affection was evident, that the full church of mourners seemed like one very large extended family of the deceased.

The Third Judicial District’s judges in flowing robes were there, every attorney in the city of Austin and many from cities all around, criminal justice and other government agencies, law enforcement, family and other relatives and friends.

They wore business suits and dungarees.

It was an intergenerational crowd with a large contingent of teen-agers, so popular are the deceased’s two daughters and a son.

The tone for the funeral service was set by the Rev. Dan Baker, former pastor at Fellowship United Methodist Church in Austin.

When the Seibel family moved to Austin and lived on the city’s east side, they started attending services at Baker’s church.

The irony that Linda Seibel was Roman Catholic and her husband was Jewish was not lost on Baker, who chuckled aloud as he recalled it.

The district judge died June 16 after a lengthy battle with cancer and despite the suffering he endured, Baker said it made him stronger in one sense.

"Michael could not, would not give in – even at the end," Baker said.

Baker also told the St. Augustine crowd: "Michael has gone to meet his maker and when he meets the almighty, I can imagine he will address him as ‘your honor,’" Baker said.

Joseph Seibel, younger brother of the deceased, shared intimate family stories about growing up with an older brother.

Noting his brother’s athletic prowess, the younger brother repeated several instances in his childhood when it was "good to be Mike Seibel’s younger brother."

He concluded his remarks saying, "It always felt good being Mike Seibel’s little brother and it always will feel good in the future to be Mike Seibel’s little brother."

Then, he added that he felt "very proud and honored that this small town in Minnesota has so much love and honor to pay their respects to my brother.

"That makes me feel good to be Mike Seibel’s little brother, too."

District Judge Donald E. Rysavy confessed he is having a hard time "saying goodbye to a special person."

On the advice of his wife Jane, Rysavy wrote a letter to his friend and colleague when he was first diagnosed with cancer and that’s what he did at Thursday’s funeral service.

The judge deviated from his letter-script to tell more stores about his colleague and concluded his remarks saying, "Mike was my friend and I’ll think about him each and every day of my life."

Next, Dr. Peter Green eulogized his friend.

Green drew the loudest laughter, when he told a story of how Seibel waited patiently while a defendant stood before him in District Court and blamed a lifetime of misdeeds and criminal activity on the fact he was a compulsive liar.

"You expect me to believe that?" an incredulous Judge Seibel asked, according to Green’s story.

Green also told of his friend’s famous "Mike-isms" or frequently used words invented by the judge.

One of them was "fadiddle" or an expression the Seibel family members uttered on long car trips to identify a vehicle with a headlight that didn’t work.

"When Mike died last week, a light went out and today I say ‘fadiddle.’" Green said, choking back sobs.

A letter was read from the deceased’s daughter, Megan, to her father in which the teen-ager promised, "I’ll never forget all the small things we shared."

The Rev. Tim Biren, an associate pastor at St. Edward’s Catholic Church, conducted the funeral Mass. Rabbi David Freedman assisted as well as Pastor Baker.

Tony Alonso and Kelly Jones provided several musical selections with the Austin High School Chamber Orchestra.

Casket bearers were court reporter Gary Ofstedahl, Tom Neilon, the Mower County Correctional Services director, friends Drs. Larry Nace and Peter Green and "Mike’s younger brother," Joseph Seibel.