Worthington High Schools Alumni Club - Deceased Classmates
First Name
Michael Hampshire
Maiden Name
Last Name
Korstange
Passing Date
11/23/2023
Class Attended
1962
High School
Worthington High School
Michael Hampshire Korstange, age 80, went Home to be with the Lord on November 24, 2023. He was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. Mike, as he was known to friends, graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree, Chapman University with a Master of Arts Degree in Education, and further studies at the University of Redlands. He joined the Marine Corps, becoming an artillery officer with deployment to Vietnam serving in 21 combat operations. He was awarded a Bronze Star with combat “V”. After Vietnam, Mike continued to serve as Captain Korstange in the USMC for twelve years. Mike was a Renaissance Man. He was a warrior, a poet, an athlete, and an artist. He was a servant and a leader. He was at home in the outdoors, as well as in his garage, making furniture or jewelry. Mike was a thinker and a doer, a designer, builder, and inventor. Most of all, he was a man of faith. “How blessed is the man who’s strength is in Thee.” Psalm 84:5. “Dad had many accomplishments in his life from his education to his military career and on to his careers after the military. However, to me, the most important accomplishment was raising me and my brother, along with our mom, in a Christ centered home where he established a Biblical legacy. He taught us about the importance of Christ in our lives and led by his actions and lifestyle. We were engaged in a church community from a young age, and he desired for us to have a Christian education prior to college to prepare us for the challenges we would face in life. The Biblical legacy he built was passed to me, then Matt and I raised our daughter in a Christ centered home, and Erin is now married and she and her husband, Jared, will raise their family with the same Christ centered values. Teaching me that a relationship with our Lord and Savior, in my mind, was Dad’s biggest accomplishment and now I have joy of knowing that he is living eternally with his Lord and Savior and because of his love for Christ, there will be generation after generation, after generation, of his family raised knowing Christ's love.” “Dad leaves behind a legacy worthy of admiration. His was a life well lived; ripe with fight when the odds were against him and balanced by a dose of uncommon tenderness in the fray of life. All that he accomplished made him a hero to me. From Cửa Việt and Operation Meade River Vietnam to the Sierra Nevada backcountry; and from America's open roads to the trails of Appalachia, Dad was a true man among men. He proved highly capable at any craft he set his mind upon and was fueled in his heart by a parcel of creativity that had no end. For me, my dad's story was an allegory of the unbound love of Christ: Truthful. Indefatigable. Always vigilant. Always present. To those who knew him well, he lives on in legend as a man who imparted generously the good gifts of life. We will carry his torch onward.” Mike is survived by his wife of 57 years, Virginia; daughter, Heather K. Butler (Matt); son, Trent Michael (Kristen); and granddaughter, Erin K. Butler Toaz (Jared).
