Michael Mcnamara

Michael James McNamara, born July 25th, 1990 in Marshalltown, IA passed away on July 25th, 2016 while vacationing at Lake Okoboji, IA with his family. Funeral services will be at 1:00 on Saturday, July 30 2016 at First United Methodist Church in Marshalltown, Iowa. Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Friday July 29, 2016, at the First United Methodist Church in Marshalltown, Iowa. Memorials may be direct to On With Life at 715 SW Ankeny Rd, Ankeny, IA 50023. For condolences or questions please visit: www.mitchellfh.com . Mitchell Family Funeral Home is caring for Michael and his family. Phone 641-844-1234. Michael McNamara was the son of James and Debra (Alley) McNamara. At the age of 6, Michael organized his first business venture which entailed selling lemonade in front of Mandy's house, with the other daycare children. Proceeds from the sale were used to purchase tickets to Adventureland. Shortly after this period, Michael started piano lessons which continued through his senior year of high school. He loved giving back to his community, which was shown when he chose to play Christmas carols on the piano at local nursing homes. He became a mentor with the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization. Using his skills at the piano, he composed and created several Cds. One of his CDs, called "Inspiration" was for sale and the funds generated were donated to the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization. In his youth, Michael was involved in numerous faith-based activities. Not one church was excluded as Michael enjoyed time with multiple congregations before permanently landing at First United Methodist Church, and later becoming a member. In 2008 Michael was inducted into Marshalltown High School's National Honor's Society. Prior to graduating high school in 2009, Michael was awarded a full ride acedemic scholarship to the University of Iowa, where he had professional hopes of becoming a lawyer. Michael was an avid runner, often running 5 to 10 miles per day. He could be spotted running at many Marshalltown landmarks year round. In March of 2009, Michael ran the fastest mile of his high school career. A short time later, in April, Michael suffered an anoxic brain injury. This is where Michael's true journey began as he spent several years recieving intensive therapy for his brain injury. In May of 2009, Michael was moved to On With Life in Ankeny, IA. Throughout the next several years, Michael and his mother left no stone unturned as they participated in multiple forms of the latest therapies available. Michael loved to travel and had the pleasure of doing so in recent years with his family and friends. On any night of the week, you could find Michael watching sports TV with his father, especially the Hawkeyes and Chicago Cubs. Left to cherish Michaels memory are his parents Jim and Deb, sisters Megan (Josh) Crosser and Amanda (Rob) McMartin, nieces and nephews Madison, Kate, Leah, Nolan, Norah, Jack and soon to be baby McMartin, Grandma Barb Alley, and many cousins. Michael is preceded in death by his grandparents Dean Alley, Robert McNamara, Mary McNamara, and Aunt Julieanne (Prati) McNamara.