Year 15: Be Like Mike

Mike Austin himself embodies the heart and spirit of Visible Music College. Mike has passed away from this earth, but I write “embodies” because he still does live eternally and embody everything good. He departed the school and Memphis during this 15th year, but we really never let him go. Mike came to us a decade earlier from southwest Georgia as the first hired faculty member who drove hours to come be with us and discovered his new Memphis family at a job interview...

…a job interview that Mike had to excuse himself from in front of the panel and regather his composure after speaking about his care and concern for students that he teaches guitar. He broke down crying in passion for caring for his students in the interview. He was hired on the spot. He could also play guitar like no one else. Mike came to us as a gift from heaven and inevitably he and Audrey became Memphis family. Mike was the most dedicated teacher and the best friend a school could have - professionally hard to watch during worship (rather, easy to watch and hard to worship God sometimes because the playing was so good), personally fun and in a joking mood at all times, and an exemplar employee who gave everything to students and the Visible Community.

I still quietly celebrate Mike Austin Day on the final day of Blitz each August.

People come and go in our lives but those precious few are the best part of being human. Positive about people, earnest in serving God, and especially flamin’ awesome on electric guitar. We had a lot of great new students and graduates this 15th year, we celebrated Visible15, but we lost Mike to Georgia and grand babies. Then, just way too soon after, we lost Mike from the earth and travelled ourselves once to southwest Georgia to be in a state of shock and loss with the family. We should all try to be like Mike. He wasn’t a star in the material world, but he was the star of our large group of amazing staff and he will always be missed.

We all endure annual joy and loss, misunderstandings and emotional release and pain. But if each of us could be like Mike, the world would be a better place for it.

Be Like Mike.