1943-2023

Mike Harold Mitchell was born in Yoakum, Texas, on Oct. 10, 1943, to parents Henry Lee Mitchell and Melba Ruth Riner Mitchell. He was called to his forever home with our Lord on Jan. 14, 2023.

Mike graduated from Columbus High School in Columbus in 1962 and from Texas A&M University in 1966. Mike married his high school sweetheart, Sally Ann Mehrens, on July 3, 1965, taking her from the school in Austin to be a student with him at Texas A&M.

Mike was a career United States Air Force officer and pilot. His first years were spent as an Instructor Pilot teaching students to fly and then serving on the Standard Evaluation team for Pilot Training. After a tour of duty in Vietnam, stationed at Korat Air Base in Thailand, Mike returned to San Antonio to become an Instructor in Pilot Instructor Training. As part of the Standard Evaluation Team, he was sent to the country of Jordan in the Middle East to set up and write the syllabus for a Jordanian Pilot Instructor School. Months later, he returned with his family to serve two years in the American Embassy in Amman, Jordan, as Assistant Air Attache. Upon returning from Jordan, Mike was assigned to the Tactical Air Command as an F-15 fighter pilot. The remainder of his career was spent with the F-15 Eagle as a pilot and commander of maintenance squadrons in Arizona and Okinawa, Japan, except for a short tour with the A-10 as the AGS commander.

Upon retirement from the Air Force, the Mitchell family moved to family land near Van. Mike commuted to Plano where he was employed by Chrysler Technologies, a defense contract company. The company became E-Systems and then Raytheon, moving Mike to their Waco location. Retirement brought great joy living near Van and Canton with Mike’s five brothers and families also retiring to the property.

Mike was active in his Christian faith as a pastor of a small rural church in his college days and as a Sunday School teacher, a jail ministry worker, a deacon in his church, and a Gideon. He wanted to be sure those he loved and even acquaintances knew his Lord.

Mike recovered from several illnesses that were expected to take his life. While the illnesses did not take his life, they stole much of the joy in his life, limiting his activities. Through it all, Mike remained so generous and always so interested in the activities of his children and grandsons. He remained an avid Aggie and did all he could do to influence the younger generation to choose Texas A7M. Anytime Mike spotted someone wearing an Aggie ring, it sparked a conversation. His Aggie ring was his most prized possession, and if he could have chosen the music for his service, he would have had us play the Aggie War Hymn!

Mike is preceded in death by his parents, Lee and Ruth Mitchell; brothers, Henry Lee Mitchell, Jr.; John Mitchell and wife, Frances; Don Mitchell, and Ted Mitchell.

Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Sally Mitchell of Ben Wheeler; son, Scott Mitchell of Los Angeles, CA; daughter and son-in-law, Stacey and BJ Anderson of Ben Wheeler; grandsons, Justus and Gage Anderson; brother, Pat Mitchell and wife, Beverly, of Eustace; sisters-in-law, Martha Mitchell; Julie Mitchell, and Judy Mitchell, all of Ben Wheeler.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Gideons International Van Zandt County, P.O. Box 1041, Canton, Texas, 75103, or Colfax Men’s Ministry, P.O. Box 1380, Van, Texas 75790.