Mr. Dusan Richard Popadich

Dusan Popadich (b. 1933 - d. 2017) passed away Wednesday at Beaumont Hospital in Trenton of heart failure at the age of 83. Born in Yugoslavia (Serbia) to a hotelier and as the youngest child in a large family, his childhood was interrupted and compromised by German invasions during World War II. After having lost his father and multiple siblings to the fighting, Dusan left Serbia for the United States and the promise of a better life for himself and the new family he sought. With the help of his older brother, he slipped through the Iron Curtain and defected to the United States in 1958, where he and his brother set up a small, but successful, dental laboratory in Southgate, MI. Shortly thereafter, and having established American citizenship for himself, he sent word to his home country for his true love, Stojka, to join him. That love would become his wife of over 50 years. Together, Dusan and Stojka would raise and college-educate 3 daughters: Lila, Sonja and Michelle, of all they were both very proud. Dusan was a patriotic American, appreciative of the rights of U.S. citizenship and the land of opportunity that the United States proved to be. He was also a loyal University of Michigan sports fan, having witnessed many a football game at The Big House while his daughters attended school there. Go Blue! In addition to his aforementioned wife and daughters, Dusan considered himself very fortunate to have 4 grandchildren, Sasha, Athena, Odette and Eamon, all of whom brought him great joy.