STETSON – Mike Maher Langford, 11, died unexpectedly March 4, 2006, at a Bangor hospital. Mike was born Oct. 6, 1994, in Ellsworth and lived most of his life in Levant and Stetson. He was in the 4th grade at Morison Memorial Elementary in East Corinth. He is missed so much by his parents, Lil Langford and Tom Maher; his brother, beloved role model and protector, Alf Maher; and his sister and constant companion and playmate, Tara Langford, all of Stetson. He is also survived by his brother, Joey and Joey’s family. Mike had many special people in his life, including Carolyn Smart and her family, Jo and Bob Phillips, Uncle Wil Langford, cousins, Jesse Langford and son, Jesse. Also, Uncle John Langford, Aunt Annette Langford and several great-aunts and a great-uncle in Florida and California. He was predeceased by his grandmother, Millee Wragg, someone he loved so much, in October of last year. Mike’s faithful dog, Jetta, will miss him, but will be well taken care of by Alf and Tara. Mike was so special that it’s hard to describe him. He was a shining whirlwind of activity, talking, singing, laughing, crying, yelling and filling our house with his usually sunny presence. He was always making something, doing something, talking about something he wanted to do or be in the future. He loved his family and his “people,” as he called them passionately and unconditionally, no matter how often they let him down or made him do things he didn’t want to do. He managed to live a life full of illness, discomfort and pain with zest, spirit, optimism and enjoyment. He taught us so much about life – and now, death. In lieu of a memorial service, friends are invited to call, email, write or visit as they wish. We hope that Mike’s “people” will remember him by doing some of the things Mike loved to do: hugging their kids, saying yes instead of no to other people and to life; by running to embrace other people and life and taking every opportunity to have fun and make other people happy. Because we’re atheists, we don’t believe that Mike is going to an afterlife or to heaven. But we do believe, that the laws of physics apply to human beings and that is a comfort to us. In Nature, nothing is created or destroyed, only changed. We believe that Mike’s spirit and essence have been changed into something else. We hope that he’s at peace and we will celebrate his life for the rest of our lives.
MIKE MAHER LANGFORD
