Michael Ernest Vixie

Mike Vixie was born April 21, 1950 in Walla Walla, Washington to parents Ernest and Helen (Watson) Vixie. He died suddenly at home on May 20, 2014 while recovering from knee replacement surgery. The oldest of 5 children, he grew up in the Walla Walla area and remained there until 1983 when he moved to Portland, Oregon where he lived for the rest of his life. Mike had a wonderful childhood growing up on a farm near Lowden, Washington. Nestled in the wheat fields, it was a great place for adventurous kids. They rode bikes, played with pets and invented all kinds of games to play. Their exploits during this time are the stuff of family legend. There are a lot of great stories that were told over and over at family gatherings such as the time Mike ended up in a barbed wire fence after riding a bike with no brakes. Another time he pounded on a rifle shell with a hammer until it exploded while Janet and Gary hid. Luckily, no one was hurt, but Mike\u0027s bare chest was peppered with gunpowder. As the oldest, he was the fearless leader and the rest followed merrily along. Like most farm boys, Mike spent many summers working with our dad, starting out driving the water truck during wheat harvest, working his way up to driving combine. Mike graduated from Washington State University with two degrees - a BS in Computer Science and a BA in Business Administration. He was a member of the Theta Xi fraternity at WSU and a diehard Cougar fan. After graduation, he returned to Walla Walla and worked for Martin Buchanan for several years before taking the leap and moving to Portland in 1983. He always said it was the rainiest winter in Portland history. Mike attended Computer Career Institute where he earned a degree in computer programming. He also taught there for a time before beginning a long and successful career at Regence and IBM. He had recently retired. Mike enjoyed volleyball, softball, bocce ball and golf and was an avid bridge and cribbage player. He was an active member of the Portland Volleyball Association where he served on the board for many years. Mike got his love of games at an early age. He and Gary would play marathon monopoly games in their room for days on end. We spent many Saturday nights at the kitchen table playing Parcheesi. Pit was a particular favorite for us all. We would play until dad made us stop because he couldn\u0027t stand the noise. Mike came from a large extended family with many aunts, uncles and lots of cousins. One of his greatest joys in life was attending family gatherings where he was usually one of the last to leave. His friendly manner, sense of humor, and upbeat attitude earned him many friends throughout the years. He will be greatly missed and never forgotten by his large circle of friends and family. Mike was preceded in death by his father Ernest Vixie in 2012. He is survived by his mother Helen Vixie, his siblings (Janet Holm , Gary Vixie, Vickie Olson, and Carol Vixie), his brothers- and sister-in-law (Pete Holm, Barbara Vixie, and Chris Olson), his nieces and nephews (Lori, Sara, Amie, Ben, Matthew, Hilary, \u0026amp; Sabrina), and 1 grandnephew (Johnny). A memorial service for Mike will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, June 20th, at St. Luke Lutheran Church, 6835 SW 46th Ave., Portland, OR. Memorial contributions can be made in Mike\u0027s memory to the WSU Foundation at www.foundation.wsu.edu . A private family interment will take place in Walla Walla."",