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The Family of Captain Mike
Mike and I were the only 2 children in our family. There were only 51 weeks that separated us. He loved to call me during that one week a year that we shared the same age to tease a bit. I never failed to call him back the next week to remind him how OLD he had become. < smile > We were close our whole lives. Years and miles never changed it a bit. Mike loved people and people loved Mike. He always had a way of making everyone feel important and special because in his mind, THEY ALL WERE! His passing has left a huge void in our hearts. I'm just thankful that I was lucky enough to have been his sister.
Love you Bro!
Phyllis
( Chubs )
Photo of Mike & Phyllis
(Click Here)
What attracted me to Mike was his sense of adventure his beautiful smile and his love for animals and children. We became really good friends before we were bitten by the love bug. How magical it was and I am so glad I got to experience that bliss with such a wonderful man. I had the pleasure of sharing 27 very exciting years with him. Mike was my friend, lover, partner in crime, as he always used to say, husband, father to Jessica and Michele, grandpa to Zachary, brother to Phyllis, Unc to Wendy and John, son to Ma, Dad to all our critters. Life will never be the same without him.
Love you forever.
Nikki Medeiros
Photo of Mike & Nikki
( Click Here )
Photo of Mike, Nikki & Moxi
( Click Here )
At 5'2"my son was a giant among men. He led an amazing life, just like his Dad, always ready to face the next challenge. A man loved and respected by all that knew
him. Forever in my heart, I am proud to have the honor of being his MOM.
SEE YA LUV YA "MA"
Photo of Mike & Mom ( Click Here)
Captain Mike was a great friend to me. I always enjoyed just going down to the boat and dropping in , just to see what his latest project was. I think the best was the underwater camera he designed. But I think what I really admired about Mike was that he - like myself was not from Tuscaloosa - being an outsider he could see a BIG, BRIGHT future for the riverfront, the growth of tourism, and just the potential this great city has. He inspired me on many occasions. This community will miss him, our industry will miss him , and I will always be blessed for having the opportunity to get to know him.
Robert Ratliff
TMP
Executive Director
Greater Tuscaloosa Convention & Visitors Bureau
Nikki and Mike opened the Bama Belle and their hearts to the homeless animals in our area, and wanted to make a difference. They graciously allowed us (Tuscaloosa Metro Animal Shelter), to hold an Adopt-A-Thon on their boat to find homes for these unwanted furry friends. Mike could not have been more hospitable and was so encouraging of what we were trying to do. He was a genuine nice human being, and I will always be grateful for him being so nice to all of us, and especially to our young volunteers who were touched by his sincere interest in them. He will be missed by all of us, and our homeless animals have lost a champion for their cause.
Judy Hill, Director T.M.A.S.
I never got to cruise on the Bama Belle while Captain Mike was here, but I can see I missed meeting someone special.
Donna
I had the pleasure of flying with Mike when he was at Edgartown Air and then we worked together at Cape Air. Mike was always smiling, even when the weather was down and the delays to Boston were measured in hours. When another pilot was done flying for the day and had perhaps opened a beer in the station, and Mike had one more round trip to go, he would take a great whiff of the bottle, and say, "yyyeeeaaahhhh!!!! I'm ready to go now!" And when he was done flying for the day, he always wanted to go home to Nikki. He was a very special person, and I am glad to have known him.
Love, Meg (McCaughey) Siderwicz
I meet Mike and Nikki through a mutual friend (an aircraft mechanic) while they were still running the Katama airfield on Martha’s Vineyard in the 80s. This friend suggested that I introduce myself, and mention that I was a pilot who might be interested in flying for them (if they ever decided to actually hire someone), which I did. Sometime later, Mike came into the Radio Shack store, where I was working, to buy a telephone answering machine, and, with a sort of Colombo type afterthought, asked if I was really interested in flying for them. Edgartown Air was in its infancy (Nikki booked the charters, and Mike flew the flights), they had just bought a Grumman Twin Commander, and they were looking for someone to fly the single engine Cherokee 6. I owe my friend the mechanic (thanks Bobo!) a huge debt. I have always said that I never felt like I worked for them, it was always more like I was working with them. Some of the working conditions were less than ideal in the beginning (no hanger – no fun in the winter), but Mike was always there, and never asked anyone to deal with anything that he wouldn’t deal with himself. And of course, the regulars that they built up loved them both (how could they help it). He, and Edgartown Air, financed my training for my multi-engine rating, and we both got our ATP ratings together, so we could start doing scheduled flights. We took our jobs very seriously, but when the chance for a little fun came by, he grabbed it (formation flying on the empty double section return flights, even one “dog fight” in two of the Britton Norman Islanders – kinda in slow motion, anyway. He once appeared in a borrowed helicopter, and taught me how to hover around a rock). We became very competitive with our landings – in fact, for a while, some of the regulars would actually hold up Olympic style score cards rating our landings (I’m not making this stuff up). After a particularly nice squeaker, I remember one construction worker yelling out “Oh! My neck!” At the end of the day, we would compare our scores. When we first started doing scheduled flights with the Islanders, Mike talked the FAA into giving us SLO as our airline identifier (OK, you pilots out there will get it…) – his sense of humor was contagious. He once made up a diploma for one of our more nervous passengers, who, after flying with us for several months (nervously), on the last flight she would be taking with us, had to endure a 2 hour flight because the landing gear would not come down. After extended creative light aerobatics, Mike managed to get the gear down and locked, and after the flight, she was able to laugh about the whole thing. His manner was always very reassuring, and he always went out of his way to make people feel comfortable. It was an attitude I worked hard at emulating. After joining Cape Air, we both had to learn the 402 together (thanks Meg!), and get used to a slightly different operation, but the goal was still mostly the same – give your passengers a good ride, and make them feel comfortable and safe. I know he was doing the same thing on the Bama Belle. Nikki, thanks for sharing him with all of us.
Much love, Jack Mayhew
"Mike talked the FAA into giving us SLO as our airline identifier?" Okay Jack, you need to let us ALL in on this one!!!
The mystery is solved! Thanks Nikki! "SLO WAS DUE TO THE TURTLE LOGO ON THE BRITTEN-NORMAN ISLANDERS. THEY WERE SO SLOW, YOU COULDN'T TELL THEY WERE MOVING, HENCE MIKE TRIED TO GET SLOW, BUT YOU CAN ONLY USE THREE LETTERS. SO THEY USED TO SAY MVY TOWER THIS IS SLO4242N OR SLO6612J AND SO ON. PLUS THEY EACH HAD STUFFED TOY TURTLES SITTING ON THE DASH BOARDS, WHICH LED TO OUR LOGO OF THE TURTLE."
Many have spoken and written about what a great and loving person Mike was. I've been working on this poem for quite some years and I think it's fitting to use it now. Hope you like it. As we gather for funerals of relatives or friends, we speak of their lifetime in years; We always use dates for the day they were born and their death that brings us to tears. But what matters most, is between those two dates, it's the years represented by a dash; For that dash represents all our time on this earth and we don't know how long it will last. It's not the possessions like our cars or our houses and certainly not large sums of cash; What matters the most, is how we have lived, loved, and spent that dash. Once we are gone, those who have loved us, really know what that small dash is worth; People define our little line, by the way we had lived it on earth. It's value stays hidden to all that pass by, between those dates engraved on our stone; But our dash can be longer though not in its length, but in hearts of the people we've known. Take time to think everyday, are there things that you'd like to change; For you'll never know how much time you have left or if you dash has passed the mid-range. If we could slow down enough to consider, all that is true and so real; Do you think we could ever slow down enough to learn about how others feel. We need much less anger and to appreciate more; We should love all in our lives, like never before. We should treat each other with love and respect and always try to smile; Remembering that our special dash will only last for a while. So when your eulogy's being read, with your life's actions to rehash; Would you be proud of the things they say, about how you spent your dash? I think Mike's dash was spent well. We can all learn from his happy go lucky attitude towards people and life. He was always willing to take a chance for adventure. He made Indiana Jones look like a beginner. Though family and friends miss Mike and feel a great loss daily. The real loss is for those people that never got to meet Mike at all. I will certainly miss Mike as I have always looked up to him as a big brother.
With love and respect your cousin WAYNE
Thanks Wayne, your poem is absolutely beautiful.
I worked for Mike and Nikki at Edgartown Air in the late 80's and early 90's on the Vineyard. Mike had a "giant" smile and a "giant heart . He was one of the nicest people I have ever met and I am so lucky to have known him. I know that he loved his family and Nikki dearly. I think he is soaring way above us with the angels. I will never forget you little guy .
Love, Cookie
Being very good friends with Mike's sister, I knew Mike pretty well back in the 70' & 80's. What a guy, he was always the life of the party, whether playing the guitar or whatever, can't think of anyone with the personality Mike had of making us all feel special. So very, very sorry to all of you Nikki, Jean, Phyllis, Jessica and Michelle. He's your angel now watching out for all of you.
Love ya, Sue Stephenson
My wife and I only sailed on the Bama Belle a few times but it only took one time to know that Captain Mike and Nikki are both wonderful people. They always made us very comfortable and they got to know and recognize us after only sailing with them a couple of times. I will never forget the in-depth "tour" of the bridge that Captain Mike once gave me. He was truly a warm, generous and friendly and pleasant person and he will be missed!
Barry Durand
I truly hope that I can live a life of such love, optimism, energy, ambition, loyalty, and humility. My Dad lived every day as if it were his last. He accomplished so much in his life yet you'd never know it unless someone else told you. He was never one to talk about himself. He always wanted to hear about you, instead. I never knew him to take anyone or anything for granted. He was a role model for civility. He always said every person starts out at 100% with him. He loved life with great passion and loved his family and friends more than life. I treasure everything he has given me, intangible and tangible. Fortunately for us all, he was able to pass along the intangible gifts of his wisdom, morals, sense of respect for self and others, compassion, tolerance, devotion and memories to all those whom he ever met. Those are the gifts we can keep in our hearts, forever. Fortunately for me, the tangible gifts I have from my Dad such as photos and gifts give me something to physically hold and keep. My dad treasured the freedoms that we are so fortunate to have and highly respects those who serve this country whether it be through the armed forces or local peace officers. In Vietnam, he served one tour as a paratrooper and one tour as a Chinook helicopter pilot. In the private sector he was an entrepreneur. He always made a living by doing something he enjoyed. He said life was too short not to. What a life he gave me and my sister! I don't remember much from the time while he was in the Army other than I know I was born in Germany and my sister was born in Ozark, AL. In Ozark, AL, we played in the woods when dad and Danny Golda owned a frog farm (the Ozark Amphibian Center to be correct). In Portsmouth, RI we lived on Common Fence Point where we played on the beaches and golf course. The "little red store" was a neighborhood candy store/newsstand. I loved to run so Dad would let me run to the store and he would follow me in the car to go buy candy. My Gram Jean, Auntie Phyllis, Uncle John, and cousins John and Wendy also all lived on Common Fence Point. Auntie Phyllis would dress me and my sister up like dolls for school then after school we'd go see Gram Jean. Dad was the chief pilot of the UMass Life Flight program while in Worcester, MA. Dad would fly Santa Claus in to see the kids at the hospital around Christmas time. My sister and I got to ride in the Life Flight helicopter with Dad and Santa. When Dad moved to Martha's Vineyard to operate and manage the Katama Airfield, we got to spend our summers and Christmas vacations with him. During the summers my sister and I would ride our bikes around Edgartown. We'd always stop at our friend's fruit stand to eat cherries then go to the end of Main Street to play around the docks and boardwalks. We loved coming home for Nikki's cheeseburgers and ice cream. At night, we always loved camping in the planes parked at Katama Airfield and watching all of the skunks run around the runways. Keep in mind Katama Airfield is a grass airport (the largest one in the U.S.). Dad would let us ride the tractor with him as he mowed the runways. He took us riding on the beaches in his jeep and showed us how to let the air out of the tires when driving on sand. We'd dig for clams, fish off the shore, and sail on the water. Dad loved to teach us by showing us interesting and historical places and landmarks. Flying, however, was always the best with Dad. If my Dad was at the helm, I was never afraid. Although Dad and Michele did enjoy testing me with their favorite little aerobatic moves. We'd fly low and close to the ocean to look at fish or high in the sky to see the top sides of the clouds. When Dad moved to Tuscaloosa, AL, he picked up a new hobby -- Riverboats. I have two favorite memories. One is the night Michele and I spent the night with him on the Bama Belle. The river was flooding and the dock was under water. We took shifts to watch the water levels and adjust ropes. We slept on air mattresses and just enjoyed having him all to ourselves. The other is when he taught us how to pump hydraulic fluid. We had to pump 55 gallons of tainted fluid out and 55 gallons of new fluid in while he had a wedding being performed on the boat. It was so much fun. The engine room was so loud that my sister and I had to text message each other to communicate. Once we finished our job, we stayed in the engine room because we were too dirty to come out where normal and clean people were. To pass the time until the wedding was over, we started playing charades. Michele got really creative with the gas mask and a piece of hose. We truly enjoyed being able to help my Dad. In the true spirit of my Dad, we took work and enjoyed it. I have learned from my Dad you can never take yourself too seriously, or you'll miss all the fun. These are only a few of the wonderful and precious memories that I have of my Dad. I loved, respected, and admired him. He gave me the gift of life and taught me to appreciate it, maximize it, and hold myself to the highest standards. He instilled in me so many traits, morals, and characteristics and I am grateful. My Dad was the perfect man.
With Eternal Love for My Dad,
Jessica Medeiros Garrison
or as Dad used to say "Jessica Lynn Dedearest"
Photo of Jessica & Mike
( Click Here )
Photo of Mike's 2 daughters Michele & Jessica
( Click Here )
Photo of Mike's grandson Zachary 6-07-01
( Click Here )
Photo of Mike's grandson Michael who was born 3-27-07 ( Click Here )
To Mike's dear family and friends, I had the great pleasure of getting to know Mike, Nikki and "the Girls" beginning in 1982 when Mike and I were involved with the launch of New England Life Flight in Worcester, Massachusetts. Mike was such a great member of our staff - so positive, optimistic, such a "can do" attitude, a bit mischievous! - and a great friend to all. Mike, Nikki and I stayed in touch over the years - Edgartown Air (Nikki, remember mowing the runway!), Cape Air (JFK, Jr. sightings), Penn. and the trains and, most recently, Alabama, and the Bama Belle. I have heard stories about Mike's Mom, his sister and "the girls" (as told by one extremely proud Poppa!!). During the past month, I have revisited frequently one of my "Life Flight memories" of Mike. We were on a night flight inroute to pick up a patient. It was an especially clear crisp night. The stars in the sky were brilliant. I remember Mike commenting to the other crew member and me how he thought it was just so beautiful to fly at night. He said the dark black ground below reminded him of velvet and the lights of the homes and streets reminded him of jewels sitting on the velvet and then, of course, there was the light show from the heavens above - magical. That image has stayed in my head for ~ 20 years. And on numerous occasions these past few weeks, I have found myself outside on these crisp cold New England nights looking up at the stars, talking with a friend. I am so grateful our paths crossed, I so wish his time had been longer, I am so sad for his family and friends. God speed, Mike, and may you have clear skies, brilliant stars and strong tail winds on your journey.
Much love, Karen Plainte Massachusetts
Photo of Life Flight ( Click Here )
I have worked on the Bama Belle, or should I say I've had the pleasure of working there for only about a year. Mike and Nikki always made coming to work a pleasure--never felt like work. Mike was such a charismatic, warm and genuine man. He was always open to new ideas and constantly trying to help or improve everything and anything. If you had a small concern he treated it like a priority. He was absolutely one of those rare people in this world that made an impact on each person that he met. He had an anecdote and one liner for everything--and could tell interesting stories for hours. I always remember how warmly he would always greet us as we would come aboard to work and just as warmly thank us each and every time we left. I am so lucky to have gotten to know him and the Medeiros family.--Emily Self
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