Michael Allen Marcks

Michael Allen Marcks, age 70, of Austin, Minnesota, passed away on Saturday, February 21, 2026, at Mayo Clinic – St. Mary’s Campus. Michael was born on July 29, 1955, in Austin to Marlin and Sonya (Schreiber) Marcks. He attended Austin Public Schools through 8th grade before moving to a farm outside of Austin where he then graduated from Hayfield High School. After high school, he attended Austin Vocational School for two years. He started working for his dad’s Pepsi company at an early age before becoming a Mechanic at Sears. He spent most of his working life as a welder for Hydro-Ax where he met many life-long friends. In his spare time, he helped his dad farm. He met the love of his life, Debbie Willmert, and the two of them have been together for 42 years. They had one son together, Darrick, and raised his stepchildren, Steve and Sara as his own. He was very gifted with his hands and could fix anything, quickly becoming the family mechanic that everyone relied on. Mike could always be found in the garage or blasting CCR on his stereo and drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon. He loved to be outside, especially camping at Gooseberry Falls where he would spend hours looking for agates along the shores of Lake Superior (the “Big Lake”) and pulling pranks on his nephew, Luke. His favorite was four-wheeling at his friend’s cabin, Big Z, and taking many beer breaks along the trail. He and Debbie loved to go for long rides on their Harley Davidsons. They went on many road trips to Sturgis and Daytona with his dad and brother by their side. In his later years, he spent a lot of time on his side-by-side with his dog riding shotgun while they went on park patrol. He never lost his mechanical touch and passed on his wisdom of cars. One of his proudest moments was when he and Darrick worked together to rebuild Michael’s Stock Car motor he raced at Chateau Speedway in the 80s. They got in running and put it in Darrick’s 1968 Chevelle. He was beaming the night he followed Darrick home in that car.

Michael is survived by his fiancé, Debbie Willmert; son, Darrick (Kelsie) Marcks; stepchildren, Steve Willmert, Sara (Jeremiah Hoffman) Willmert; step-grandchildren, Brandon, Aren, Locklynn, Lilly, Mason, Bonnie, Gabriel; nieces and nephews, Luke Marcks, Alisha Brooks, Christopher Marcks, Ashley Marcks. He is preceded in death by his parents; grandparents; siblings, Judy Marcks, Brian Marcks and a niece, Cammi Marcks.

A celebration of Michael’s life will be held from 4:00–7:00 p.m. on Friday, March 6, 2026, at the Izaak Walton Cabin in Todd Park in Austin, which is very near where he grew up. Worlein-Hoff Funeral Homes of Austin are assisting the family with arrangements.