Mack Motzko Honored At Celebration Of Life In St. Cloud: 'The World Did Not Wait To Love You'
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The gymnasium at St. Cloud Cathedral High School was filled Monday afternoon as community members gathered to remember 20-year-old Mack Motzko.
The son of Gophers' men's hockey coach Bob Motzko died in a car crash in Orono. He was a passenger, along with 24-year-old Sam Schuneman, who also died. The driver, 51-year-old James Blue, turned himself in last week. Blue admitted to drinking before the crash.
All walks of life were seen inside one room at Cathedral High School with one commonality: their love for Mack. During the service, Ella Motzko painted a picture of her brother's life.
"Dear Mack, words will never describe how proud I am of you. You grew up to become genuinely my favorite person in the entire world," said Ella. "I take peace in knowing all the words said about you in the last week were said to you and about you throughout all your 20 years. The world did not wait to love you and tell you how special you are. I will spend the rest of my life striving to be more like you, but you have a pretty tough act to follow."
Friends encapsulated their brotherhood with Motzko, saying he valued relationships and was strong in his faith.
"Mack found himself staying at my house quite often, and even had his own room for a while," said Noah Amundson, one of Motzko's best friend. "Mack would find himself just hanging out at my house even when I wasn't home. He'd voluntarily clean my bathroom almost every other weekend. He would wash all my bedding because to him there was nothing better than coming into a clean, freshly-made bed."
"Does anyone here have a memory of him not smiling? I don't think I have a single memory of Mack not smiling," said Drake Lundeen, a lifelong family friend.
Motzko also had a love for sports. He played in several hockey teams, including at St. Cloud Cathedral. During the memorial service Monday, attendees wore red in honor of two other passions of Motzko's: golf and Tiger Woods.
"We are with Mack now and we will see Mack again. That's what we believe and that's true," said Brian Schoenborn, Motzko's godfather.
Sam Schuneman, the other passenger that died in the crash, was also fondly remembered during the service.
"Sam was loyal, goofy, kind, truly the love of my life," said Ella. "I couldn't imagine a more perfect angel to be with my brother."
