Michael Ossorgin

Michael Mikhailovitch Ossorgin VII passed away surrounded by his loving family with prayers and peace on September 16, 2022. A more generous, big-hearted, loyal, fun-loving man never walked the earth. He loved God, the church, his family, friends, the Broncos, the Beatles, the country greats, the blues, reggae, hip hop, getting into trouble, red meat, green chile, espresso, the latest technology (he was the first of Apple lovers), movies, and full-bellied laughter. He considered every person he knew either family or friend.

Michael moved with his family from Annapolis, Maryland to Santa Fe when he was eight years old. His father was a tutor at the then-new campus of St. John’s College in Santa Fe. In 1969 Michael laid adobe bricks with his family to convert the garage to a Russian Orthodox family chapel in their backyard, a chapel dedicated to The Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. Lesser known, young Michael also founded a short-lived casino that he personally owned, financed, and operated during the transition from garage to chapel – an early sign of his future reign as the undisputed slot machine world champion.

Michael sang and served his whole life, with his family and the parish, in many churches and at home. In 2001, with his co-workers he built a church dedicated to his ancestor, St. Juliana of Lazarevo. In 2016, he received a Benedictory Tribute from Archbishop Kyrill for his “more than twenty years’ service to the Parish of St. Juliana of Lazarevo,” where he was “Warden, Reader, Subdeacon, Canonarch, supporter, and builder of the Temple in which the community worships.”

During high school, Michael worked as a mechanic and pump operator at Payne’s Exxon on Old Santa Fe Trail. He graduated from St Michael’s High School in 1974 and St. John’s College in 1981 with a double major in 1) Philosophy and 2) History of Mathematics and Science, and a double minor in Comparative Literature and Classics. He was perhaps the only Johnny to ever write his senior thesis on Keynesian Economics. In 1974 he worked in the forest service, where he met his best friend and future brother-in-law, Ray Santillanes. They were trained to become frontline forest firefighters or Hot Shots, a dream cut suddenly short when, in Michael’s words, “Jimmy Carter cut the federal funding.” An eternal thrill-seeker with boundless energy, Michael in his youth ran up and down Atalaya mountain and later in his eternal optimism, attempted to ski black diamonds, which quickly lead to a torn ACL. He worked through several surgeries to compete nationally in Shotokan Martial Arts in the eighties. And he taught his sons to play his favorite sports: basketball and football.

In 1978 he became a licensed general contractor in New Mexico and founded Ossorgin Construction, which hired as many as 77 employees at full steam, years later adding a subsidiary business, Oso Fine Woodworks. His co-workers called him “Oso,” derived from his last name – he loved bears, was built like one, and eventually made his company logo a bear. He and his crew became known as master craftsmen of smooth plaster interiors. Ultimately, Michael acquired a general contractor’s license in Colorado, Arizona, and California. He worked on several resorts and hotels: The Peaks at Telluride, the Boulders in Carefree Arizona, The Inn at the Anasazi, Viki’s of Palm Desert, and remodeled the homes of Oprah Winfrey, Joe Cocker, and Donald Rumsfeld. Michael also quietly transformed many private residences in the Santa Fe area.

Michael sponsored the Santa Fe city basketball team “Ossorgin Construction,” an elite squad of former Division I college players and local greats that won several city championships. He popped into games now and then and was known for his unguardable sky hook in the post.

Michael shared his love of sports with many family members and friends. At peak fanaticism, Michael had 12 season tickets to the Denver Broncos Mile High Stadium despite living seven hours from Denver (five if he drove). He was caught on Denver’s Channel 4 News gathering a dozen Broncos autographs at the forgettable Super Bowl XXIV in New Orleans. He attended four of John Elway’s five Super Bowls. One of his most prized possessions is an autographed photo from John Elway that the hall of fame quarterback personally sent him after dining in a restaurant he had plastered. All it took was for the owner to tell him how big a fan Michael was – that and showing Elway his orange and blue business card, where he had handwritten “Go Broncos!”

Michael loved music of all genres and could be overheard singing and harmonizing to his favorite music on any given day. He loved technology and had a gigantic satellite and a state-of-the-art surround system at what was possibly a time before either came to market. He had an espresso machine in his office before every restaurant in town. He loved to howl with his dachshunds. He gave many people their first one-hundred-dollar bill, and he gave many more people many more hundred-dollar bills freely out of sheer generosity. He loved trucks and put a race-car engine and booming sound system into his favorite blue and white Chevy.

He disarmed even the most jaded strangers with humor and kindness. He understood Kanye’s sentiment, “I hate being bipolar it’s awesome” more than most. He adored his wife, Tina. He made everyone laugh. He opened his home and garage doors to so many people. And the outpourings of love and tears received by his family since his parting testify to his immense love and to the many individuals whose hearts are permanently and profoundly touched by him.

Michael’s funeral will be held on Tuesday, September 20, 2022, at 12:00 P.M. at Holy Trinity Orthodox Church (231 E. Cordova Road, Santa Fe, NM) followed by burial at Santa Fe Memorial Gardens on 417 E. Rodeo Road. Please come to Michael and Tina’s house immediately after the burial for food, music, and storytelling. All are welcome and Michael would have loved as many people as possible to be there to celebrate his life.

Michael is survived by his wife of 45 years, Tina Ossorgin, daughter Eliza Serna and son-in-law Brian Serna with grandchildren Aidan and Cassiana Serna, son Michael Ossorgin VIII and daughter-in-law Anna Stern with granddaughter-to-be, son George Ossorgin and daughter-in-law Faith Rosetta with grandchildren Hanawenh Shenandoah and Lillian Ossorgin, big sister Lydia Ossorgin and brother-in-law Kevin Holthaus, and a multitude of in-laws, godchildren, friends-turned-family, and nieces and nephews of which Misha, Serge, and Julianna Santillanes, Maria Gregori, Nick and John Ossorgin, Jenny Wiemer, and Cameron Dunbar were especially dear. Awaiting him on the other side are his parents Michael Ossorgin V and Lillian “Penny” Ossorgin, known to their beloved family parish at The Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos on El Caminito in Santa Fe as Father Michael and Matushka Yelena, his aunt Julianna (aka “Tsoitse” and “Baba”), older brother Michael VI, younger brother Nicholas, brother-in-law Reinaldo, and a multitude of friends and family. What a celebration they must be having now. May his memory be eternal. Go Denva!

In lieu of flowers, his children request that you please donate to one of the three Orthodox churches in Santa Fe (St. Juliana of Lazarevo, Holy Trinity, St. Elias the Prophet), help someone who is down and out, or give his wife Tina a small fraction of what he gave you.