I first met Mike at A&M. He and my brother Mairtin became friends while Mairtin was serving on Corps Staff with Mike's buddy Sean Cullen. They seemed to have a fast friendship right from the start. At first I just heard stories of Mike through Mairtin and I was glad for him to have found such a good friend, you could just tell Mairtin loved hanging out with Mike. The first time I met him I thought he had one of the most magnetic personalities of any guy Iíd ever met. I really enjoyed his upbeat attitude and his huge smile. We talked so easily. Then Mike came down and stayed with us over the summer while we were all working for Mattress Mac at Gallery Furniture. There was a herd of boys staying with us including Mike, Mairtin, Bob Dicus and Sean Cullen. My family loved having Mike around. My grandmother still says how she was so happy to have him. He was so sweet and he kept his room tidy which was the complete opposite of all the rest of the guys. I got to talk to Mike a lot over the summer and I really enjoyed having some one who was as motivated as I was to share ideas with. The last time I saw Mike was 2 years ago. It seems like yesterday. It was my first trip to NYC and I called Mike to see if we could meet up. I was so excited to see him again and to see how he was doing. The group I was with had made reservations at a small bar in the city where there was an awesome live band. Mike came out to meet us and we spent the whole night laughing, talking and listening to the music. It was great to catch up and to hear about the fast-aced life he was living. Seeing him again was like old times. At around 2am we realized that everyone in my group had left and that the bar was closing down. Mike grabbed a cab and dropped me back to my hotel safely. To this day it is one of my happiest memories. I often think back on it and think of Mike and the shining light that he was for everyone he met.

I loved him very much and will miss him always.

Sincerely, Fi NiMhuirgheasa