Michael Harold Dutcher

Michael Harold Dutcher was born on October 24, 1946 in Lanesboro, Minnesota to parents Harold Dutcher and Betty Freeman, and was the oldest of 5 children. He loved going to his paternal grandparents' dairy farm in Wisconsin during the summer where he enjoyed driving the tractor and working alongside his grandfather. He also loved sneaking his grandmothers' fresh-baked cookies. His family moved to Utah during his high school years where he began a variety of life-long hobbies which he quickly and naturally excelled at: skiing competitively and racing motorcycles and cars. After high school he joined the military and served in the Army. After his service, he attended BYU in Provo, Utah where he was captain of the archery team, and studied both Accounting and ways to woo his future wife, Terri. They were both members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and were married for time and all eternity in the Provo, Utah temple. After marriage, they relocated to the great state of Kansas (which he loved more than any other place in the world) so Mike could work with his father and brothers in the oil business.

Mike and his family lived in Paola, Kansas surrounded by family members until the late-1980's when the price of oil collapsed. He moved his family to Olathe, Kansas where he put his accounting degree to work, serving as the chief financial officer for various companies. For the last 20 years he worked at Pulse NeedleFree Systems' as the Vice President of Finance. He directed all of Pulse's financial, engineering and production activities. He had a brilliant engineering mind that was most at home solving complex problems with both precision and finesse. He loved his job, working 10-12 hour days, and never wanted to retire.

Although most would see Mike as a reserved man, he had a great sense of humor, and his family loved when he would regale them with stories of his youth. Over his lifetime, he owned several Corvettes, a 1969 Camaro, a fixed-wing airplane, a helicopter, a gyrocopter and his beloved Buell motorcycles. He loved driving on the country roads outside of Olathe on beautiful and majestic Kansas days, then coming home and working on them in his meticulously organized garage.

As he grew older, the tender side of his heart came out more and more and he was deeply moved by beautiful music, delightful animal videos, and talking about his beloved wife, Terri. He could barely speak about her without getting emotional. Their love will forever be deep and abiding. He loved her cooking and the time they spent after supper talking with each other. He loved serving her and designed and fabricated many things to make her life easier and more enjoyable. His most recently completed project was a puzzle table for her.

He loved reading the scriptures and spent several hours daily studying. He started with custom-made large-margin scriptures that he'd fill with notes and research, then built custom computers to organize his studies. He served in many church callings throughout his life, but especially loved and lived for his time working in the temple. His time spent there was precious, as was the traditional date after at QuikTrip for a hot dog and a Coke with Terri. He loved his family more than anything and was a wise mentor, calm advisor, and dear friend to his wife and children. His absence leaves a hole that will never be filled in this life, while his family looks forward to being reunited in the next.

He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Terri, his children Matt (Bonnie) Dutcher, Kirk (Nikki) Dutcher, Sarah Rogers, Kathryn (Brett) Litzler, and Alyson (Brandon) Green and 10 grandchildren (plus a set of twins on the way who he is preparing for earth.)

We love you, Dad.

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