Remembering Michal Andrew Peter “Tuz” Tuzinkiewicz
This past month for all of us has been extremely challenging, with lots of new norms and ways of living and working. However, for those of us with the Presidio Sentinel, it was life changing for an additional reason. Our friend and co-worker, who was also the creative director and graphic designer, Michal Andrew Peter “Tuz” Tuzinkiewicz passed away the morning of Monday, March 30. It was just days from the April issue of the Presidio Sentinel going to press.
Michal had been a member of the Presidio Sentinel team for thirteen years. He and I had developed a very close working relationship and friendship. His death, which is not due to CV-19, was totally unexpected.
In addition to sharing a passion for journalism and publishing a monthly community newspaper, we also had similar family and religious values. As practicing Catholics, we would also share our virtual mass options during the Easter season. Even though we missed going to church and experiencing the holy season with our families, friends and neighbors, we appreciated what our church community has done to keep us connected and involved.
I’ve shared this friendship and working relationship with lots of people over the past month, including our writers and advertisers. We are all feeling the loss of Michal and are still in disbelief that he is gone.
His wife, Karen, who called me the morning of his death, has been an amazing inspiration to all of us working through this experience. Without her assistance, we wouldn’t have been able to get the May issue of the Presidio Sentinel to press. It took patience and understanding, and a willingness to continue Michal’s legacy and love for graphic design and newspaper publishing.
Michal, who was 52 years old, is survived by his wife, Karen; his son, Travis; his mother, Maria; and siblings: Paul Tuzinkiewicz, Annette Burbach, and Natalie Vaughan. His father, Andrew, passed away earlier this year.
Michal was born in January 1968 in Derby, England and relocated as an infant to the United States when his parents moved to Rockford, Illinois. After moving to Indiana, Massachusetts, and New York State, the family’s final move was to Rancho Peñasquitos, California in 1982.
After attending Mount Carmel High School (1986) and receiving his Bachelor’s Degree in graphic design, Michal started his own photography business called Tuz Studios, and later transitioned into web design/hosting and graphic design.
Michal and Karen met in January of 2013 at the Weigh to Go group in Escondido, CA and were married in June of 2014. They enjoyed going to Julian for weekend getaways or just a nice drive. They dreamed of moving to Julian upon their retirement.
Michal was a very devoted husband and father. He enjoyed riding his beloved Triumph motorcycle and spending time with his friends while riding throughout the county and to the ocean and mountains. He was a religious man and loved learning more about his faith every day.
He will be deeply missed by family, friends, and all who knew him.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Michal’s memory be made to Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church, Encinitas, CA for their new building projects: Saint John the Evangelist, 1001 Encinitas Blvd, Encinitas CA 92024 or online athttps://www.osvonlinegiving.com/486 for the Capital Campaign Fund.
Category: feature, Local News
