'The party ain't over until I say it is': Cancer may cost painter his career, but it won't take his spirit

 

Updated Nov. 26, 2023

MUKWONAGO, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Mike Trease, who is featured in this story, passed away on Saturday, Nov. 25. We were told he was surrounded by family. 

Published: May 14, 2023

MUKWONAGO, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Every time Mike Trease paints a new home, it's part of the process: going back and putting the finishing touches on areas that might've been scuffed up by other trades crews doing their work.

"This part always stinks," Trease said while crawling up the stairs at one recent job site, covering up scuff marks. "'Cause you already did all the work, ya know?"

Trease has done lots of work in his career. He began painting for his father's business as a teenager, and now runs the operation, having been in the trade as a contractor for 36 years.

Over the last few weeks, Trease has come to embrace every aspect of the job. These are the final houses he'll be painting.

Trease has stage four colon cancer, which is on the verge of progressing to stage five.

The Mukwonago man was first diagnosed in 2016, when doctors removing polyps found one that was cancerous. The hope was the cancer hadn't spread, but it did.

For the nearly seven years that followed, Trease had been able to work through rounds of chemotherapy, testing and frequent trips to the doctor. Even as tumors emerged in his liver and lung, Trease continued to paint.

But earlier this year, the cancer got into his bones, causing excruciating pain that made it impossible to paint.

"One of the tumors got into my rib and actually fractured my rib," Trease said. "I can hardly move my arm. There would be no way I could keep up with painting."

Trease committed to finishing as many houses as he could in a subdivision about 10 minutes from his house. It was a fitting place for his career to end because Belman Homes is building the houses.

The relationship between the businesses spans multiple generations.

"He was painting houses for his dad's company," Belman Homes President David Belman said. "And I was working on the job sites for my dad's building company."

Trease said one of the hardest conversations he's had during his fight with cancer was when he told Belman in late February he couldn't continue working.

"Just the fact of me giving up that part of my life, to talk about it, was very difficult," Trease said. "It even chokes me up right now, even thinking about it."

Belman sighed when asked about that day. Belman said he knew that conversation was coming and had been dreading it.

"That was hard for us, too," Belman said. "Because that's a hole for us, in not only building the homes, but also, the person that he is."

Belman raved about Trease's people skills. He said it was rare to have a contractor who would step in to help reassure nervous homebuyers when complications arose during construction. Then, Trease would turn around and help arrange work schedules for various trades crews who'd be coming in and out of the house.

For Trease, all of that was ending. Simply surviving was about to become his full-time job, and he was struggling to accept that.

"Maybe because I feel like giving up," Trease tearfully said. "That I'm giving up in a certain way? I don't know. It's just tough. It's something I've known my whole life."

Still, Trease refused to give up easily. He committed to finishing as many of the houses as he body would allow. And he would continue to fight cancer, refusing to give up on treatment.

Trease credits his support system: his wife and two adult children, along with those with whom he's worked over the years, including Belman.

To help the family cover the cost of medical bills, Belman started a Gofundme page, which has collected more than $12,000 to date. A benefit event is also scheduled for May 20 in Genessee Depot.

Trease says his reason for working as long as he did, and now committing to fight cancer until the very end, can be summarized by one of the taglines on a flier for the benefit: "The party ain't over 'til Mike says it is."

The inspiration for that rallying cry came from when Trease was on the operating table, about to have his gallbladder removed.

"The doctor was ready to start the procedure and I was looking at him, and he said I was supposed to be asleep," Trease said. "I told him the party ain't over until I say it is."

The cancer is also keeping Trease from pursuing other passions, like fishing -- there's a risk strong waves could break his bones -- but Trease said he's focusing on the finishing touches he can apply: maximizing the time spent with his family and, perhaps, taking a trip or two.

"Your life is like writing a book, you know, and the different chapters that you go through," he said. "There's some good chapters, there's some bad chapters, but at the end of the day, it's a great read."

Organizers are also selling t-shirts to benefit the Trease family. You can buy one here.