Lisa K. Humke

Lisa K. Humke

“She was insightful and profound, while also being playful and luminous. In a word, she was radiant.”

Those are the words Mary E. Bussell wrote to describe Lisa K. Humke – mother, wife, daughter, sister and much-loved friend to many, who passed away in April after battling cancer for several months.

Celebration of Life services for Lisa, 52, will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 21, at Christ Lutheran Church in Zionsville.

Lisa was a beautiful woman with dark curly hair, engaging eyes and a quick wit. She had a generous spirit and a laugh that filled the room. She lived by the sentiment that it is better to ask for forgiveness than to seek permission. Her husband, Steve Humke, and daughter, Rachael, were the joys of her life.
She was a true friend and confidante to many and did not shy from offering a reality check to others when needed. Like her father, the late Col. Dan McCarthy, she was a voracious reader. She had her mother Mary’s sense of humor.
Lisa grew up as part of an Army family that included three girls and one boy. She was born in Italy and lived in Ecuador and Panama, Florida, Virginia, California, Hawaii and Alabama. She attended high school in Honolulu and graduated from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. where she met Steve.
As a result of her upbringing, Lisa loved to travel. New York, Chicago and the wine country of California were among her favorite places to visit. She also enjoyed Europe, Costa Rica and Cuba. She was conversational in Spanish and fearless in using it on trips, her friends recall.

Even greater than her fondness for traveling was her affection for her four-legged friends. After she and Steve were married in 1989, they added two labs, Buck and Otis, to the family. Elvis, the first of many Portuguese Water Dogs that became members of the Humke clan, joined the family in 2001. He was followed by Tsunami, Nemo, Sizzle, Tater and Maverick.

“Elvis started out as a family pet,” remembers Lisa’s friend, Mary-Kay Schroeder. “But then Lisa got involved with training her dogs for water sports and her competitive nature took over. Elvis didn’t really like to swim, but he would do anything for Lisa. She went on to achieve the top water title with him.

“Agility competition was Lisa’s love and it certainly showed in all of her dogs. Lisa and Nemo achieved 2 MACHs, which is the highest level in Agility and takes real team work. Even during her illness, Lisa was working with Nemo on Utility, the highest level in Obedience competition.”

For Lisa, it wasn’t just about having animals as pets. She also understood the happiness they could bring to others. “She was a sharer,” a friend observed.

She trained several of her dogs to do therapy work. She would take them to a hospital and visit patients. She also taught the dogs to participate in library events, training them to sit patiently as the children read to them.

Along with her own pets, she fostered dogs and cats that had been given up by prior owners. She was relentless in finding homes for the unwanted creatures, frequently placing them with friends and family.

She was also an avid equestrian. She got her first horse when she and Steve moved to Indiana. She taught her daughter to ride before Rachael could walk, and they spent many hours together on horses.

Lisa worked several years at the Michigan Road Animal Hospital. As a result of her mother’s love for animals and the influence it had on her, Rachael is now preparing to study to become a veterinarian.
Lisa and Rachael were also a great team in the kitchen and enjoyed experimenting. “You never knew what wonderful dishes they would come up with – especially during the holidays,” says her mother-in-law, Carolyn Humke. “It was always a treat to have dinner with them for the company and the food. However, you could never ask her for the recipe, because she would create a dish and not write down the ingredients or the amounts she used.”

Survivors besides her husband, Steven K. Humke, chief managing partner of Ice Miller LLP; and daughter, Rachael E. Humke, who graduated from Duke University earlier this month; include her mother, Mary McCarthy; sisters, Claudia McCarthy and Dr. Kerry Cleary; brother, Dan McCarthy, and mother-in-law, Carolyn Humke. Preceding her in death were her father, Dan McCarthy, and her father-in-law, Ramon Humke.

Lisa also left behind many human and animal friends whose lives were impacted by her tenderness and concern for others.

Contributions in Lisa’s honor may to directed to the CancerCommittee Research Fund, by checks payable to: PWDCA Remembrance Fund,c/o Angela Rogerson, 2106 20^thAvenue, Monroe, WI 53566-3425