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Thursday, August 31, 2017
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Jim Williams posted a condolence
Saturday, November 1, 2014
To Godi and Her Dear Family:
Most of us called him 'Mike.' Not 'Mr. Habib' nor 'Michael' nor 'MJ' nor any other permutation. Just simple, plain, American 'Mike.' My friend was a lower-case democrat who treated everyone the same — with respect, friendship, and interest. A man of principle and honor, Mike set high standards for himself and for others. He expected folks to meet those standards. He always did.
Mike and I met more than 40 years go in the DC area, when we were junior Foreign Service Officers in the Department of State. As I recall, our first encounter was as opponents in a vigorous game of 'Diplomacy.' In board games, as on the basketball court and the playing field, Mike was a tough competitor. He played to win, but he respected his opponents and he was gracious when he lost — which did not happen often. Mike was a graceful and gifted athlete who could out-dance most men and who excelled at every sport he tried. My athletic horizons were far more modest. For a period in our early middle age we played tennis, often in mixed doubles with our wives, Godi and Anne. We had a great time, whoever won. It was always fun to play with, or against, Mike. Our family will always be grateful to Mike and Godi for urging us to ski in the Austrian Vorarlberg. For years we had skied in the Tirol and they had skied in Lech im Vorarlberg. Finally in 1987 we tried Lech. As Mike and Godi had said, it was vastly better.
My friend was a lifelong fan of sports, especially football. When he first met Anne, he was delighted to learn that she had gone to the University of Alabama when Bear Bryant-led teams were winning national championships. From then on Mike always greeted Anne with a hearty 'Roll Tide!' Years ago you had to come from the SEC to know what that cheer meant, but Mike knew the phrase well and clearly embraced its happy optimism. Indeed, his last message on our answering machine in late September was to thank Anne for a personal note she had sent regarding his illness. He thanked her warmly and closed with a strong 'Roll Tide!'
Though Mike was a Jewish kid from the Bronx and I was a Southern Baptist from rural North Carolina, we had a lot in common. We both were intelligent, hard-working, and ambitious. We both were political officers who loved to write. We both were young, black-haired FSO's — born some three months apart in 1942 — with facial hair. We both loved our mothers and admired our fathers. We both had younger brothers. We both had beautiful wives. We both liked to speak German. Here, though, Mike had the advantage. I had minored in German in college and spent two semesters in Munich, but his wife was a native speaker. Even so, Mike's command of German was astounding.
We knew each other our whole careers. We were promoted in the same years. We had the same concerns over salary and benefits. We were in the same cone. We loved Europe and Germany. Oddly enough, we only served once at the same post. That was Embassy Bonn from 1975 to 1979. Mike was the first American I encountered when I walked into that vast building in July 1975, after a tough unaccompanied tour on Cyprus. He said 'Hi, Jim,' and we picked up where we had left off in 1973. Over the next four years the Habibs and the Williamses saw a lot of each other. Our sons went to the American School and were good friends. Godi and Anne worked together on a number of Embassy projects. We did joint outings to Karneval parties, wine festivals in the Rhineland, and Burschenschaften evenings at the University in Bonn.
Mike had a gift for meeting people. Everyone, especially Germans, liked him. He knew more people in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs [his domain] than our Ambassador, Walter Stoessel, and more people in domestic German politics [my domain] than I did. In an embassy that boasted many strong representational couples in those four years, Godi and Mike were among the best, if not the best. Their span of contacts was phenomenal, natural, and productive. The Foreign Service got superb value when it sent Mike and Godi to Bonn.
In later years we kept in touch even though we did not see each other often. When Mike was Political Counselor in London, he called to tell me about his dad's strokes in Florida, and later about his mom's fatal encounter with a runaway car. In both cases he had to fly home suddenly. He was a loving and devoted son. When I was DCM in Athens, Mike called to discuss options for a summer cruise that Godi and he were planning in the Aegean Sea or the Ionian Sea. I don't remember which boat he hired, or where it sailed, but I am sure that the trip was memorable.
In retirement Mike and Godi dined often with small groups of friends at restaurants in northern Virginia. Anne and I were fortunate to be in one of those groups. Mike's favorite place was L'Auberge Chez Francois in Great Falls. He also loved Alexandria eateries such as the Chart House, the Columbia Firehouse, the Cosmopolitan Grill, and the Via Veneto. Those meals were marked by good cheer, good conversation, and bonhomie all around.
For his whole life Mike had the constitution of an ox. I do not recall him being sick — ever — until two years ago, when he got the illness that ultimately brought him down. His e-mail announcing his diagnosis was a model of candor, courage, and grace. Even when we visited Mike in the oncological ward, as toxic drugs dripped into his vein, he radiated good cheer, sports talk, and vitality. Also hunger: he asked us on one visit to bring him a large sandwich from Subway. Brain cancer got a real fight when it took on Mike. He gave it his best shot. He handily beat the doctor's predictions and the odds. He lived fully until the end.
Anne and I last saw Mike in mid-September, when the four of us dined with Vlad and Pipa Lehovich at the Cosmopolitan Grill. By then Mike was in a wheelchair. Yet his mind was clear, his speech was on point, and his humor was unimpaired. So, too, was his candor: waiting outside the restaurant, he struck up a chat with another couple, pointed to his cap, and matter-of-factly told them that he was fighting brain cancer. That meal at the Cosmopolitan went very well, and we all looked forward to the next one. Anne and I then took a week's vacation on the Outer Banks. When we returned, we called and e-mailed each other several times in search of a date for lunch at the Cosmopolitan. In our last phone call on 17 October Mike — typical for him — asked how I was doing and — among his last words to me — wished me 'good luck.' We agreed to have lunch the next week, and we both hung up hoping it would happen. Less than four days later, he was gone.
If I had to pick one word to describe Mike, I would choose 'vital.' I never met a man who loved life more or who lived it more fully. Mike embodied vitality and good cheer wherever he went. He left behind scores of family members and friends who loved and admired him. All of us shall miss Mike deeply. We shall never forget that smile, that enthusiasm, that energy.
To the Keepers of the Heavenly Kingdom, we say: open wide your gates and welcome this earthly original. Embrace him, comfort him, and love him, as we did down here on Earth. He will make you proud and happy, as he did us.
And to Mike -- dear Mike -- whose soul now dwells in infinite space, we say: 'Roll Tide!
C
Charlie & Sue Fairchild posted a condolence
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Words cannot begin to express our sadness. We miss you. Thank you for bringing so much integrity, honesty, goodness, fun and joy the court. You will always be our Mayor Mike and our Poker King. God Bless you sweet Mike. Love, Charlie and Sue and family
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Heidi Woodrum posted a condolence
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Heidi Woodrum purchased flowers (The FTD Our Love Eternal Bouquet - Standard)
In loving Memory from John & Heidi Woodrum
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Dr. K. Simeonidis posted a condolence
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Dr. K. Simeonidis purchased flowers (The FTD Uplifting Moments Bouquet - Standard)
"Die Gedanken sind frei..." In liebevoller Erinnerung! Kathrin und Tanja mit Familien.
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Maggie, Paul Sangster and Famiy posted a condolence
Saturday, October 25, 2014
We are deeply sadden to hear of the loss of your father and grandfather. Your family is in our prayers.
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Clara Craft posted a condolence
Friday, October 24, 2014
Clara Craft purchased flowers (The FTD Gentle Blossoms Basket - Standard)
We are sorry for your loss. Our thoughts are with you. The Craft Family: Clara Craft, Ruth & John Martin, Ellen & Lewis Phillips, Beth Morgan, Carl & Dawn Craft, Donna & David Cain, Don & Janice Craft, Julie Craft, and Children
Adams-Green Funeral Home & Crematory
721 Elden Street | Herndon, VA 20170
P: (703) 437-1764 or (703) 471-4090 | E: bill@adamsgreen.com
