Erich E Mische

Erich Mische spent the first 35 years of his adult life in government and politics. For the past decade he has been paying his penance for those years as the Executive Director of a non-profit called Spare Key. Spare Key, www.sparekey.org, provides financial support, assistance and advocacy for families facing a medical crisis. Through their direct impact giving platform, www.HelpMeBounce.org, Spare Key can now serve families in all 50 states, and the District of Columbia, in the United States of America.

In 2020 as COVID-19 began to shut down the world, Mische had to come up with a way to save Spare Key from the financial ruin that was quickly spreading across the globe. He came up with the idea to take a raft down the Mississippi River from St. Paul, Minnesota to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, as a way to raise money and awareness for the organization.

Two months, nearly 1,700 miles and 10 states later, Mische completed his perilous journey and in doing so helped to secure Spare Key's future. "Hope on the River" is Mische's ode to the people along the Mississippi River who provided him with a never-ending source of Hope as he struggled to stay afloat, literally and figurately, during his journey.

Mische, whose career has included a stint as an elected official, an altar boy, a telemarketer earning Susan B. Anthony silver dollars for prying political donations from people, the first person to blow the whistles of the Titanic since the ship sank in the Atlantic, a Chief of Staff in the U.S. Senate and finally, the Executive Director of Spare Key, has rarely allowed his limited intellect, physical talent or lack of courage to deter him in his life.

He and his wife, Mary-Helen, are the fortunate and blessed parents of Owen and Maisie, and the tolerant owners of their smelly dog, Sailor. They make their home in Woodbury, Minnesota.