Thoughts of Mike

I handed the newspaper to my brother Kevin last night. He read the obituary on the back page and handed it back, simply saying, "That's too bad." Mike Wilson was one of Kevin's classmates and friends from Day One at Lincoln School. Mike died May 12 just 12 days after his 60th birthday.

It seems our entire family had connections with the Wilson family in one way or another. Almost all of us six siblings sat alongside or near the Wilson siblings at Lincoln School or during catechism or Sister School at St. Joseph's Catholic Church. Mike's talented younger sister Terry led the choir in which my mother participated. At St. Joseph's, Mike's mother Eleanor was a dedicated queen bee of all things associated with the parish---catechism, altar society, you name it---Eleanor did it faithfully for years.

Eleanor even stayed after the noon Mass one day when my half-grown "pagan babies," as Fr. O'Donovan pegged them, were baptized. Fr. O'Donovan had cornered me at the post office and asked when I was gonna get them baptized. I had no better answer than to say "this week . . . when's a good time?" Eleanor was there.

A few years after that, I got to know Mike's daughter Melissa who lived with Eleanor on Division Street. Melissa was bright, supportive and fun. Every year for teachers, there are students who stand out among the crowd. Melissa was one. I've maintained my friendship with her ever since she graduated in 1990, and since then, she has maintained an occasional friendship with one of those pagan babies in Boise. She has earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Boise State University and will soon have her Master's. She's a talented photographer and artist.

Now, she's devoting her time to her own family. I'm sure Mike's passing has left another huge void in Melissa's life----just as Eleanor's did several years ago. Mike had a huge presence wherever he went----from grade school on. His obituary reflects that dynamic, upbeat manner that took him through the Navy and Vietnam. He received four impressive medals for his Vietnam service.

Mike returned to Sandpoint from time to time. I always enjoyed meeting up with him and catching up on whatever was going on in his life. I don't think he wasted too many minutes of his life. That's especially evident in the obituary, which mentions college in his 40s, work as a human resources director. That all came after a 20-year Navy career. Lung cancer eventually slowed him down physically but not his "optimism and positive attitude."

I send my best wishes to Melissa and all the Wilson family at this time. The Wilsons were and are like family in my heart. After all, there is a lifelong bond among us Lincoln School kids of Marvel Ekholm times and St. Joseph's kids of the Fr. Dooley era who struggled, played and learned together before making our unique marks on the world. So, saying good bye to Mike means we've all lost one of our own.