Connor Sorensen

A spirited, vivacious, and driven young man, Connor Sorensen was an inspiration to all who were within his reach. His journey was laced with health struggles, but he lived life to the fullest despite his challenges, setting a goal and achieving it with finesse. Connor was a loving son and devoted brother who cherished his family and friends above all else. From a young age he carried himself with honor and integrity coupled with leadership skills that were unmatched. Life will never be the same without Connor here, but his legacy of perseverance, strength, and unwavering courage will remain part of all who were blessed to know and love him.

The 1990s were a colorful time in American history when we were introduced to the World Wide Web as computers were becoming part of our world like never before. It was during this exciting time that a young couple from Beaumont, Texas, was pleased to welcome a baby boy into their hearts and home on October 30, 1991. Connor was one of four children born to his parents, Dennis, Jr. and Maura (Sullivan) Sorensen, and was raised in the family home alongside his siblings, Joshua, Kathleen, and Aidan. Connor was an amazing older brother who was fiercely protective of his siblings, although he rarely admitted that he loved them. He was continually on oxygen for most of his life, but he never let it slow him down. He and Katie ran races across the yard when they were young, Connor dragging his oxygen behind. Katie claimed that she slowed down letting her brother win, but he won nonetheless, and Connor never let her forget it. As they got older Connor vowed that no boy would ever touch his sister, even trying to break up his sister and her boyfriend via text during his last few days. He also regularly hounded his brother about homework and grades, too.

Connor’s earliest years were spent in Beaumont, where he started in the Cub Scouts as a Tiger Cub with Troop 177. He participated in the Beaumont Rotary Soap Box Derby and came in second overall two years in a row, which earned him a $1500 scholarship each year. Connor worked his way through the ranks as a Cub and Boy Scout, enjoyed camping with his troop, and took on leadership roles as well. He continued his Boy Scout endeavors with Troop 287 in Portage when they moved to the area eight years ago. Connor achieved the highest honor as a Scout when he earned his Eagle Scout rank with troop 287.

As a very young boy Connor developed a love for video games. When he was four he told his mother that his handful of bubbles was actually a brain while taking a bubble bath. Connor went on to point out the frontal lobe, the occipital lobe, the parietal lobes, the brain stem, and the pons, eventually naming eight of the ten parts of the brain with knowledge he gained from a video game.

In both Texas and Michigan, Connor attended local schools. He was a great student who always did well with the toughest teachers. Although he wore oxygen, his peers thought of him as just another kid - especially when Connor was hunting them down during a spirited game of squirt guns! He received a double lung transplant at the University of Michigan during his junior year due to his lifelong debilitating disease. Connor was a member of the Portage Northern Marching Band for five years, was inducted into the National Honor Society in high school, and earned the IB Diploma in addition to several scholarships including the Amrhein Scholarship. Connor’s proudest high school moment came when he was accepted to Notre Dame.

After graduating from high school in 2010, Connor went on to ND despite ongoing medical conditions. There, he was involved in the climbing club and the fishing club among others. Connor was also part of the biochemistry group of students at ND and was involved in a chemistry based research project dealing with organometallics and their possible use for fuel. He was a member of the Morrissey Manor dormitory during his time at Notre Dame and was very proud to be a “Man of the Manor.” Connor greatly enjoyed yearly games of Human Versus Zombies (HVZ) that overtook the ND campus. He loved the community there and was a frequent fan as an ND student at all sports, especially football and hockey. Connor also attended numerous soccer matches and basketball games as well. He was able to play his saxophone in the hockey pep band during his freshman year. Connor had aspirations of attending medical school after attending ND. In fact, he took his MCAT with a severe case of pneumonia, which resulted in admission to the hospital the day after the test. Connor graduated from ND with a BS degree in biochemistry in 2013 and was even personally delivered his degree from the Provost of ND, both of which were the two proudest moments of his life.

Although he never held a paying job, Connor did provide service to various groups. He did things such as play his saxophone at Christmastime for the Salvation Army bell ringers and also made the cataloguing the veteran graves at Riverside Cemetery in Kalamazoo. Connor was an “honoree member” of the Marine Corps League and worked several times at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

In his free time Connor enjoyed pursuing his interests. He was an avid fisherman who loved catching redfish and surf fishing in the Gulf of Mexico in Texas. In addition to Notre Dame football, Connor was a fan of Houston Texan football and Houston Astros baseball, attending many of his favorite teams’ games. Connor loved any book and was a fan of war movies and horror films with his favorite movie of all time being The Nightmare Before Christmas. At a young age he could recite every line of every song in the movie. Additionally, Connor loved playing any strategy based board or video game, and he played both the sax and the drums.

Despite the challenges he faced, Connor Sorensen lived by the mantra “it is what it is.” He always viewed himself as the same as everyone else, even when faced with his lifelong lung disease and the trauma of a double lung transplant rejection including Post Transplant Lymphoma, a serious virus called CMV, and transplant rejection. Connor treasured his parents, siblings, and extended family both in Michigan and in Texas. He will be deeply missed and forever cherished by many.

Connor Sorensen died on December 20, 2013, in Portage. Connor’s family includes his parents, Dennis and Maura (Sullivan) Sorensen; siblings, Joshua, Kathleen (Katie) and Aidan; maternal grandparents, Jackie Sullivan and Don Jarzambek, Mike and Mary Sullivan; paternal grandparents, Alice Sorensen and Dennis, Sr. and Margaret Sorensen; many aunts, uncles, and cousins. Learn more about Connor, view his Life Story film, and visit with friends and family while sharing food and refreshments on Sunday from 5-8 p.m. at the Life Story Funeral Homes, Betzler – Kalamazoo; 6080 Stadium Drive (375-2900). Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. on Monday at St. Thomas More Student Parish, 421 Monroe Street; Kalamazoo. Following the mass, a reception will be held at the VFW Post 1527, 1920 East Kilgore Road; Kalamazoo. Memorial contributions may be made to the Notre Dame Club of Kalamazoo, 5455 Gull Road, Suite D-304; Kalamazoo, 49048 or University of Michigan Transplant Center, Room 5D17 SPC 5415 – 1919 Green Road; Ann Arbor, 48109-9901. Please visit www.lifestorynet.com, where you can archive a favorite memory and sign his online guestbook.