Michael George Hardy

May 19, 1977 -

Oct 18, 2021

Michael George Hardy, beloved son, brother and uncle, passed away unexpectedly at his home in Portland, Ore., on Oct. 18, 2021, at the age of 44. Mike was born on May 19, 1977, to Bonnie and Dennis Hardy in Anchorage, Alaska. He attended Rabbit Creek Elementary, Hanshew Junior High and Service High School, graduating in 1995.

Mike attended the University of Idaho and graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and marketing. He worked at Kaiser Permanente Health in Portland for over 15 years, advancing to Senior IT Systems Administrator as an expert in the Epic heath care platform. He was valued for his ability to troubleshoot complex systems and develop and implement solutions for the benefit and medical records systems.

Growing up, Mike loved all things dealing with sports. He played baseball with Abbott-O-Rabbit Little League, basketball with YMCA and varsity basketball at Service High School. His teammates and their families developed lifelong friendships, spending many hours on cold bleachers and hot gymnasiums around the city and state. He was fortunate to travel with competitive baseball and basketball teams throughout the United States and Mexico. He learned to golf as a child and his summer job at the Anchorage Golf Course enabled him to play after-hours from "midnight to dawn." He enjoyed including that story in his tales of growing up in Alaska.

Throughout Mike's childhood, summers were spent hiking with his brothers and sister to the family cabin on Red Shirt Lake, often inviting his friends to join his family for the weekend. Christmas was a very special time for Mike to be with his family, as he flew home every December to spend the holidays in Anchorage. He enjoyed spending time with his nieces and nephews and he never complained when they wanted to braid his hair or paint his nails.

Mike moved to Portland, where he resided until his passing. He took advantage of all that Portland had to offer, attending live music events, mountain biking and playing disc golf with friends. He was a devoted Oakland A's fan and traveled around the country to MLB stadiums, supporting his beloved Oakland A's. At 16, Mike saw his first four game series in person at Oakland and he was only a few stadiums short of his quest to attend games in every Major League Baseball stadium. He loved most forms of music and often organized groups of friends to attend music festivals and concerts in Portland and around the country. His travels brought him many opportunities to experience the food and culture of the cities he visited and to meet and make friends all over the country.

Mike will be fondly remembered as a man of few words yet a witty sense of humor. He will be missed dearly by his family and friends.

Mike is survived by his loving family: parents, Dennis and Bonnie Hardy of Anchorage; sister, Carolyn (Adam) Launer of San Diego, Calif., and their daughter Jillian; brother, Greg (Lisa Cournoyer) Hardy of Sandy, Ore., and their daughters Ava and Sienna; and brother, David (Megan Bessette) Hardy of Anchorage and their children Peyton, Beck and Grant; as well as numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. Mike was preceded in death by his cousin and friend, Tim Marshall; and grandparents, Blaine and Lauraine Marshall, and Harold and Delmas Hardy.

Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m., on Saturday, July 23, 2022, at Legacy Heritage Chapel at Angelus, 440 East Klatt Road in Anchorage.