Longtime journalist Mitch Kehetian dies at age 89
Posted on February. 25. 2020
By Macomb Daily Staff
A longtime fixture in Macomb County, Mitchell D. “Mitch” Kehetian lived a decorated and colorful life — from surviving a plane crash to dining at the White House to taking in Detroit Tigers games with his family and friends.
Kehetian died Saturday, Feb. 22 at the age of 89 at Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn. He was born Oct. 20, 1930 in Detroit, began a 52-year journalism career at The Detroit Times, rose through the ranks at The Macomb Daily from the paper’s inception in 1964 to serve as its editor, then eventually retired as editorial page editor in 2005.
A native of the Delray neighborhood in southwest Detroit, he moved to Allen Park where he and his wife of 66 years, Rose, raised a family of three daughters — Grace Kulegian, an academic planning coordinator for Harvard University; Janet Haroian, an operations manager for Southern Illinois University; and Karen Kehetian, a former ad representative for the Orange County Register now working as a realtor.
“All in all, he was a man’s man,” his wife said Monday. “He was very proud of his daughters. His Armenian background was very important to him. He was a low-key, humble man.”
His youngest daughter recalled how much he loved Macomb County, and in particular Mount Clemens, despite residing in Wayne County.
“Everyone he worked with and met at the paper became personal friends,” Karen Kehetian said. “We feel like The Macomb Daily is part of our family. We shared our dad’s love with his family at the paper.”
Kehetian was also remembered fondly by his former Macomb Daily colleagues.
Ken Kish, former managing editor of The Macomb Daily, said that as an editor, Kehetian was “widely known and respected in Macomb County and around the state.”
“His leadership at the Detroit Press Club and the Detroit Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists enhanced the standing and reputation of suburban journalists. He played a significant role in mentoring and shaping the careers of countless young reporters. Like many others, I will always value his friendship and leadership,” Kish said.
Frank Shepherd, a former publisher and later owner of The Macomb Daily, worked with Kehetian in several different capacities beginning in 1969. He said Kehetian’s charisma was an asset.
“Mitch Kehetian was one of the finest journalists I had pleasure of working with,” said Shepherd. “He was a true professional with superb writing and editing skills, but his greatest asset was his personality. He was friends with everyone and he especially relished his political friends.”
Shepherd recalled Kehetian’s motto of: “Be honest to a fault and do no harm.”
Kehetian, former Warren Councilman George Dimas and two other people survived a plane crash on April 6, 1972 when a spring sleet storm brought down a prop-driven, four-seat Piper Cherokee into a farm field short of an airport in Lorain, Ohio.
He authored a memoir titled ‘Giants of the Earth’ that covered the search for his father’s sister and heritage in Turkish-held Armenia as well as Armenia’s history from its existence to the devastation as a result of the genocide of 1915-23. A cause that followed Kehetian during his career was the project to bring the remains of Eddie Slovik, an American soldier in World War II, back to the United States. Slovik was the only U.S. soldier executed for desertion since the Civil War.
Kehetian was also avid fan of the Detroit Tigers, which he shared with his daughters and grandchildren.
He served the U.S. military in the Army Active Reserves intelligence division – foreign interrogation unit. A former board trustee at Central Michigan University, he was recognized by Wayne State University’s Journalism Department with its Lifetime Achievement Award and earned the same accolade from the Society of Professional Journalists Detroit. Kehetian was named General Alexander Macomb Citizen of the Year by the March of Dimes in recognition of his support.
Marvin Sauger, a retired Macomb County Sheriff’s deputy and a longtime member of the Macomb County Board of Commissioners, would often visit with Kehetian during the start of his early campaigns in the mid- to late-1990s. The two would talk political strategy and the latest happenings in the Center Line-Warren political world.
“Every time I ran for office, he would say ‘Marv do this and do that, and don’t say anything negative. Take the high road.’ He always did his homework before he wrote a story. I always loved that man, he was a class act. He was a real tribute to your newspaper and journalism in general,” Sauger said.
Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel was a young deputy with the sheriff’s office when he first met Kehetian.
“I’ve always had a great deal of respect and admiration for Mr. Mitch Kehetian,” Hackel, a former sheriff, said. “Not only was he a fair journalist, but always the consummate gentleman.”
Kehetian was described by Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller as a “trusted voice” in the county for several decades.
“He was fair, honest and sought out both sides of every story. He was a journalist of the highest quality and I appreciated the important role he played in making Macomb County a great place to live, work and raise a family,” Miller said in a statement.
Al Lorenzo, who served 29 years as president of Macomb Community College, praised Kehetian for his leadership.
“When I first became president of the college, Mitch kind of took me under his wing and introduced me to media leaders,” he said.
Lorenzo, currently an advisor to county Executive Mark Hackel who recently retired as a deputy county executive, said during his days at The Macomb Daily Kehetian was one of a handful of people “synonymous with Macomb County.”
“You couldn’t think of Macomb County without thinking of Mitch,” Lorenzo said.
He said Kehetian was more than an editor of the county’s daily newspaper.
“Some people do their job but some people go above and beyond. Mitch was one of those people,” Lorenzo said. “He knew the county so well that if you wanted to get feedback on an idea, you would call Mitch. I could call him with an idea and know I’d get an honest answer. He was as much as advisor as an editor.”
In recent years, Kehetian had written occasional columns published in The Macomb Daily and its sister newspapers, The Morning Sun of Mt. Pleasant, Mich. and The News Herald of Southgate, Mich. A conservative, Kehetian’s columns often supported President Donald Trump while criticizing Democrats. Additionally, he was a frequent contributor to the Armenian American press from his youth until a few months prior to his death.
He is survived by his wife, Rose Kehetian; daughters, Grace Kulegian, Janet Haroian, and Karen Kehetian; and grandchildren, Melanie Haroian, Stephen Haroian, Johnny Kulegian, and Michael Kulegian. He was predeceased by his parents Kaspar and Arousiag Kehetian, brothers Phil Keith and Nash Kehetian; and sisters Grace Kehetian and Isabel Kehetian Mercurio.
A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at St. Sarkis Armenian Apostolic Church, 19300 Ford Rd, Dearborn. Burial will take place in Woodmere Cemetery, Detroit.
Visitation is 5-8 p.m. Wednesday, with Dan Gark Prayers at 7:30 p.m. and 10-11 a.m. Thursday at the church.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Sarkis Armenian Apostolic Church, 19300 Ford Rd; Dearborn, MI 48128 or to the Nor Keghi Association, 29958 High Valley Road., Farmington Hills, MI 48331.
Staff writers Jameson Cook, Mitch Hotts, news assistant Erica Stark and managing editor Jeff Payne contributed to this report.