ALVIN A. WARREN III

Ewen, MI – Alvin A Warren III (Al), age 76, of Ewen, unexpectedly passed at St Luke’s Aspirus Hospital, Duluth, Minnesota on Feb. 11, 2025.

He was born on April 25, 1948, at the Air Force Military Base, Fort Sheridan, Illinois, and was the first of three children born to Alvin and Leona Warren. He spent his early years living at various Air Force bases with his parents, eventually settling in Alpena where he attended High School and Community College.

Upon graduation from Michigan State University in 1970, Al began his career with the Social Security Administration which lasted 25 years. Although he took early retirement, he never stopped working.

His dream was to live in the U.P. which came to fruition in 1995 where he spent the first two years building his home along the South Branch of the Ontonagon River. He then returned to school and spent the next nine years as a tax preparer for H&R Block, Ironwood. After retiring from his second career, Al continued to help others by preparing taxes free of charge. He fought for democratic values, protecting the environment, advocating for wildlife and the rivers he loved. Al provided testimony before the U.S. House Committee in support of protecting the Ontonagon River system under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

Al’s passions included paddling a canoe in the rivers of the Southeast and U.P., genealogy which led him to trace his ancestry to the American Revolution, conducting wolf tracking and wood turtle surveys, gathering each fall for “spitzer camp”, riding the three miles of trails he created on his property in Ewen and sitting for hours in the wetlands thinking of how to outsmart the beavers. Al liked his coffee hot and his beer at 29 degrees. Al was an avid reader, considered himself a “news junkie” and a Civil War buff. He enjoyed making wood but will be remembered most for helping anyone who asked, whether it was assisting friends build their camps or pulling a stranger out of the ditch.

Al is survived by his wife of 41 years, Nancy, his son, Joseph and granddaughters, Ava and Emma, Howell, sister Laura Durdik (Mark), Alpena and many special friends including Jo and Dan Hendrix. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Greg.

Al was adamant that he did not want a funeral. Instead, he will take his final canoe trip with his ashes scattered at some of his favorite UP rivers this summer. A celebration of his life will also take place in Alpena at a later date.

If you like to honor Al for his years of environmental stewardship, donations can be sent to Keweenaw Land Trust, Hancock, MI www.keweenawlandtrust.org or Northwoods Alliance Inc., Land O Lakes, Wisconsin northwoodalliance.org