Benefit Planned For Toddler Who Lost Father Too Early

Friends say Michael McCann’s two-year-old daughter, Samantha, was the center of his universe.

McCann, 28, would fret through the workday to ensure his daughter would make it to dance class. He was also played a fatherly role with his fiancé’s son from another relationship.

However, McCann was found dead in a Brookfield home on Feb. 28 from a drug overdose. Sadly, McCann has been battling an opiate addiction, and it was his first relapse after entering drug treatment at a detox facility. McCann’s death left his fiancé’ and daughter  ith nothing.

He struggled with addiction and not even his closest friends knew how bad it really was,” said McCann’s friend Stephanie Wenz. “His friends and family saw a huge turnaround after he was released from rehab and are completely devastated that his life ended this way.”

McCann didn’t have a life insurance policy, and now his fiancé is raising two children as a single parent. However, friends and family are rallying to help support a family shaken by a premature death.

Wenz is helping to plan a fundraiser for McCann’s family. The plan is to create a fund his daughter can use for school and a vehicle when she comes of age. The are holding a “Mosh 4 Mikey” event at 6 p.m. June 1 at Papa’s Social Club, 7718 Burleigh St., Milwaukee.

The event includes a raffle and silent auction, as well as live music.

“He was one of the nicest guys you would ever meet. I have never met anyone with such a positive outlook or who enjoyed life as much as him, which is what still makes it difficult,” said Matt Zuba, who was a long-time friend of McCann’s. “, I know he would care less about what people think but would love any help getting any support for his daughter.”

Wenz said they were not aware how deeply McCann’s addiction ran, and did an incredible job hiding it from his friends.

McCann was a 2002 graduate of Hamilton High School’s death is still under investigation by the Brookfield Police Department after he was found unconscious and not breathing by his grandmother.

McCann worked at Lenny’s Pool Service for eight years and rose from laborer to mason. He moved to Menomonee Falls in 2001.