CLAYTON — Memories of Michael J. Geiss’s dedication to conservation, community development and recreation held by friends and colleagues will live beyond his death.
Mr. Geiss, 71, was pronounced dead Monday after he was found unresponsive on Deferno Road following a bike ride, said state police spokesman Trooper Jack Keller in a statement.
His passion at work and while volunteering garnered Mr. Geiss several hats: Thousand Islands Central School District board president, assistant and regional director of the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation’s Thousand Islands region, chairman of the Joint Town and Village Planning Board and chairman of the Clayton Local Development Corp.
For current planning board Chairman Douglas E. Rogers, Mr. Geiss was a best friend, and he has several fond memories of exercising together and traveling with their wives, Dianne Rogers and Sandra Geiss. Mr. Geiss, Mr. Rogers said, was an avid outdoorsman, a sports enthusiast, particularly for high school football, an explorer who traveled the world and an intelligent advocate for community growth. He ran marathons before a 1994 motor vehicle accident paralyzed him from the waist down and put him in a wheelchair, but Mr. Rogers said he remained active by handcycling.
“He’s a true friend. He was there for you. He cares about you,” Mr. Rogers said. “He was a good family man; a good dad to his boys.”
Mr. Geiss spent 36 years working for the parks office, and also served on the Thousand Islands State Parks Commission. Peyton A. Taylor, Thousand Islands regional director for the parks office, said he shared sound ideas for improving accessibility for all users across the parks and expressed a strong vision for trail development.
“He always had great advice on how to make our facilities more welcoming and inclusive for everyone,” she said.
His passion for trails carried over into his assistance in planning the Sissy Danforth Rivergate Trail with the Thousand Islands Land Trust, particularly its extension into the village and access for all users.
“The (St. Lawrence) River community needs more folks like Mike Geiss, and we’re sad to lose him,” said TILT Director Jake R. Tibbles.
During his tenure with the Clayton LDC, Mr. Geiss aided in the redevelopment of the Frink America snowplow manufacturing site into the home of the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel and Frink Park, as well as the planning of the Riverwalk.
“I’ve known Mike for the longest time, and he will be sadly missed by all of us,” said Mayor Norma J. Zimmer.
The Clayton community has lost a couple of other prominent volunteers over the past several months, including TILT co-founder Kenneth R. Deedy and former Antique Boat Museum director William G. Danforth.