A Friend

[Welpe]

Well said Jeff. He will be greatly missed.

[Indianaref]

63 years old is just too young. There's no doubt that Mick was a good man that consistently gave back. I'm sure that God is reviewing his life now and giving him an Attaboy Mick.

[Dan_ref]

Chuck gave me this sad news. He touched a lot of peoples lives in many ways. Condolences to his family.

[JugglingReferee]

I'm speechless.

I'm very sad to hear of this news.

I'll be praying for the repose of mick's soul.


In nomine Patris
et Filii
et Spiritus Sancti. Amen

Absolve, quaesumus Domine
anima famuli tui Mick ...
ab omni vinculo peccati
quod attollatur in gloria resurrectionis,
et refrigeretur in sanctis et electis.
Per Christum Dominum nostrum.

Amen.

[JugglingReferee]

I've traveled to Michigan many times for many different reasons over the past 10 years.

I e-mailed him every time to tell him that I enjoyed my time in his state. He always replied and more often than not, had shared similar experiences in his state.

Thank you mick for listening... every time. I'll see ya U.P. there and let's aim to work a game together.

[M&M Guy]

In many ways, this is just like a visitation. I've seen old friends show up here that haven't been here in a long time, and it's all because of Mick. Many times I've been to visitations, and the sorrow that results from knowing you've lost someone is offset somewhat by seeing familiy and friends you may not have seen for a long time.

I've also had the priviledge of e-mailing Mick outside this forum, and my guess would be he's smiling about our little "gathering" here. Let's try to keep his memory intact as we continue to use this forum as a way to enrich all of our lives, both in and outside of officiating.

My prayers are with his family. Next spring I will also be planting a couple of flowers in his honor.

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by M&M Guy

Next spring I will also be planting a couple of flowers in his honor.

I'm planting tomatoes. He gave me enough advice over the years on what kind to plant and when. Along with pictures, of course.

He had many, many friends in our little officiating world.

[Mark Padgett]

Ditto on all the nice things everyone here has said about Mick. He was always fair in being a moderator and his contributions to this board were many and on point. I'll miss him, too.

[26 Year Gap]

Never one to draw attention to himself, he no doubt would not want this thread to have a 'sticky'. With many of his posts, he could issue the 'stop sign' to turn a heated discussion back on point and with civility. Sometimes, he did issue a T [the lock], but it was always well warranted. Always a gentleman. That is what I will remember.

[Amesman]

Loved the sense of humor, not to mention the steady tiller in his hand. It was easy to see very quickly that he was a great guy to hear from.

M&M, you hit the nail on the head about the "visitation" aspect of this thread.

Is there any way someone can bring his family's attention to it? Granted, it's not been created specifically with them in mind, yet I get the feeling we'd like them to know how far his influence spread and how widely he was respected. They would be gratified, I'm sure.

[Dan_ref]

Originally Posted by M&M Guy

In many ways, this is just like a visitation. I've seen old friends show up here that haven't been here in a long time, and it's all because of Mick. Many times I've been to visitations, and the sorrow that results from knowing you've lost someone is offset somewhat by seeing familiy and friends you may not have seen for a long time.

I've also had the priviledge of e-mailing Mick outside this forum, and my guess would be he's smiling about our little "gathering" here. Let's try to keep his memory intact as we continue to use this forum as a way to enrich all of our lives, both in and outside of officiating.

My prayers are with his family. Next spring I will also be planting a couple of flowers in his honor.

Actually we can do something a bit more tangible than that. If you look at the link JR posted at the bottom it has 2 charities we can donate to in Mick's name. I would suggest we designate someone to collect the money & send it in 1 check... except the only one of you SOBs I would even consider trusting with my money is no longer with us.

So write a check & send it in.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, the family suggests that memorials be given to Habitat for Humanity or the Omega House in Houghton.

Omega House - Hospice home located in Michigan's Upper Peninsula

Habitat for Humanity International-Local Affiliates

Houghton, Michigan:
Copper Country HFH
PO Box 231
Houghton, MI 49931-0231
Phone: (906) 482-5376

So no excuses, do it now.

[truerookie]

My prayers go out to Mick's family. Whenever, I saw that Mick contributed to a thread I paid close attention to his thoughts. God Bless you Mick...

[Camron Rust]

Indeed a sad day. Mick, although I never corresponded with him outside of this forum, seemed like he was a wonderful person. I'm sure those close to them have lost a treasure.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Dan_ref

I would suggest we designate someone to collect the money & send it in 1 check... except the only one of you SOBs I would even consider trusting with my money is no longer with us.

And that is in the spirit of Mick's humor. He certainly would have found humor in that.

Man he will be missed.

Peace

[BktBallRef]

A little more composed now but still deeply saddened...

About 6 or 7 years ago, my phone rang about 11:00pm one night. A voice I had never heard asked, "Tony, you doing alright?" I said, "Great...who is this?" "This is mick. I hadn't seen you on the boards much lately, just wanted to call and see if everything was okay." "Yeah, doing great, just been busy." "Alright, see ya on the boards." Click.

That was mick. And you notice I type his name the same way he typed his name, because that said a lot about the man. He had the most gentle spirit, always the voice of reason, and always the one who looked out for everyone else. The man went out of his way to find my phone number, call me to see how I was doing, because he noticed that I wasn't posting very much.

That was the only time we ever spoke in the 14 years we knew each other, going back to the McGriff board in 1997. But we talked via AIM, PM, or email quite often. He would send me pics of 6' of snow U.P. there or his vegtable garden. He was proud of Abby and Matt and spoke often of the two of them living in western NC. We always said we needed to get together and work a game, sometime when he came down to visit them.

I thought I had regained my composure but I guess I was wrong...

I posted last week on his Facebook page, because I noticed that he hadn't posted in a while. Looking back now, his last post was in a thread I started regarding my daughter, who I was so proud of for being the salutatorian in her high school graduating class. He was just as proud.

I miss him already.

Blow one for me, mick.