It was with profound sadness that we learned about the passing of Mick Storr on 7 June 2026, in Geneva. A deeply respected member of the CERN family and an extraordinary educator, he touched the lives of generations of teachers worldwide.
Mick was born in Farsley, a village in the Leeds district of West Yorkshire, England, on 11 February 1949. After completing his PhD at the University of Birmingham in 1975, Mick immediately came to CERN as a user affiliated with Lancaster University, working in the Photon Beam Collaboration at the OMEGA Spectrometer. He stayed on as a fellow and then a staff member in the Data Handling Division, joining the emulator effort in its early days. There, he developed key translator, trigger, testing and interface software, work that fed the 168E emulators used in UA1 during the years of the discovery of the W and Z bosons, and later the CERN–SLAC collaboration on the 3081E emulators.
From 1989 he joined the Electronics and Computing for Physics Division, where he pioneered the use of object-oriented programming in high-energy physics and supported the World Wide Web development team. As divisional training officer, he began the move to the second part of his CERN career.
For nearly a decade from 1997, Mick oversaw the technical training programme, keeping it up to date with courses that met the evolving needs of the CERN community. With Michelangelo Mangano, he co-founded and ran the CERN High School Teachers (HST) programme. Mick had a unique gift for helping teachers overcome any sense of intimidation and recognise their essential role in CERN’s mission, reminding them that they lay the foundations for the scientists and engineers of tomorrow. Through his vision and dedication, the CERN teacher programmes grew into a worldwide community built on curiosity, friendship and international collaboration.
His retirement from CERN in 2013 opened only a new chapter. Returning to his alma mater as an honorary senior research fellow, he continued to contribute to science education as an active CERN user.
Many learned a great deal from Mick – a mentor, guide and constant source of encouragement. Much of what makes CERN’s teacher programmes so special today reflects the principles he championed, his values and his unwavering belief in the importance of teachers and education. Many will remember his lectures and storytelling, his songs and barbecues, the countless moments in which he made every participant feel welcomed and valued. Mick had a remarkable ability to connect with people from every country and background, and always with an unmistakable smile.
One of his best-known sayings was: “At CERN, we never say goodbye, we only say au revoir.” Those words are hard to hear today, yet they capture the extraordinary legacy he leaves through the many teachers whose lives he touched, inspired, encouraged and welcomed at CERN over so many years.
Beyond his professional achievements, Mick had a wide range of interests. A squash player invited to the Swiss national team, a lifelong footballer and later a coach, he was also active in the Geneva Amateur Operatic Society, rising from the back row of the chorus to leading roles. In winter, he skied most weekends with the CERN ski club, and even took up snowboarding in his fifties. He is survived by his daughters Sophie and Scarlett and his grandchildren Isabelle and Max, who were a source of great pride and joy to him.
Merci et au revoir, Mick, and thank you for 51 remarkable years at CERN.
