Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 12-10-2013 05:09 PM               

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Long-time collectSPACE member Michael "Mike Z" Zolotorow has died. He was 59.

Mike's son Craig wrote on Facebook:

It is with great sadness that I tell you my father Michael Gary "Z-MAN" Zolotorow has passed away. He struggled for the past 8 years with a very weak heart. He will be greatly missed by all he touched.

Above: Mike Zolotorow with his wife Phyllis and son Craig in 2009.

The following is excerpted from a description Mike wrote in 2006:

I have collected space memorabilia since the 1960s. We lived 15 minutes from Lion Brothers and a lady who worked there brought us Apollo patches before each mission. We lived in back of a man who worked for NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. He too was always giving me things. I was hooked!! There are some astronauts who have been very good to me and my son.

Mike was very proud (and rightfully so) of his three decades managing equipment for professional sports teams, including the Baltimore Banners of World Team Tennis, the Baltimore Orioles baseball team, the Baltimore Blast soccer team and the Baltimore Bayrunners minor league basketball team.

My sincere condolences to his family and friends. He will be missed.

Posts: 1031
From: The Netherlands
Registered: Jan 2003

posted 12-10-2013 05:13 PM               

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Mike must have been our biggest fan and I will miss his friendship. My thoughts are with Phyllis and Craig.

Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001

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From: Guyton, GA
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From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001

posted 12-10-2013 07:19 PM               

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Just got word that Mike is no longer with us as we have known each other for decades in sharing our enthusiasm and passion for space exploration and memorabilia collecting.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Phyllis and Craig during this difficult time. I know Mike was well-liked and loved by many within the aerospace community on many levels, myself certainly included.

He will be missed greatly and I am so glad that we were able to email each other not too long ago.

Rest-In-Forever Peace, good buddy, in the loving hands of our Savior as you enter into the everlasting ultimate "Space" kingdom, high above us all.

Posts: 2896
From: Titusville, FL USA
Registered: Feb 2005

posted 12-10-2013 07:42 PM               

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Mike has been a friend for years. He was one of the first to email me after my heart attack last June. He offered good advice based on his own heart issues. But more than that, Mike was a true friend to our cS community and to our space program. In our many email exchanges over the years, we shared our joy of having lived to see our first explorations off the planet.

Mike dear friend, you will be missed. Phyllis, Craig and the rest of your family and friends are in my prayers. I hope you are finally able to see the wonders of Gods universe. Godspeed buddy.

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From: Kew, Victoria, Australia
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From: McKinney TX (USA)
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From:
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 12-10-2013 09:00 PM               

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I just got a Christmas card from Mike yesterday.

I am at a loss for words. He was a wonderful friend. I always enjoyed talking space and baseball with him. It was through collectSPACE that we met. Mike was a good and kind man. I will miss him.

I will keep Mike and his family in my prayers.

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From: Essex, UK
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posted 12-11-2013 01:39 PM               

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RIP Mike, always appreciated your contributions to our cS community. — Adam

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From:
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From: New York, NY
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From: Dallas
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 12-11-2013 02:33 PM               

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We are such a small community. Sad to hear of the loss of one of our own.

Posts: 1744
From: Atlanta-area, GA USA
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 12-11-2013 04:07 PM               

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Our hobby has lost one of its best. Mike didn't have the world's best collection but few cared more about collecting and the space program than Mike.

But fate wasn't kind to Mike, as for some ten years his health was in decline, with serious heart problems that caused him to be in need of a heart transplant. But his many health problems and medical crises didn't prevent him from being a pleasant and kind friend to many. He will be remembered by many as a nice and considerate person, who bravely endured far more problems than he and his family deserved. He was someone to admire and to remember fondly - I certainly will.

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