Welcome to Mike Freeman’s memorial page. Here you can post pictures, video, audio recordings...ANYTHING you have that you want to share in remembrance of Mike Freeman. This page is here indefinitely and has enough storage space to hold unlimited files. So don’t be afraid of posting anything big. Mike knew a lot of people and touched a lot of people’s lives. And since it would be impossible to get every single person who met Mike together at once, this is the best way we can all come together to remember him. Please explore the space and see how you can interact to do so. Also, there is a donation page that will be set up to make donations to The Colorado Neurological Institute which includes Dr. Arenson’s clinic. ALSO, if anyone is involved in any sort of marathons/fund raising events in Mike’s memory, let me know and we will see if we can help raise money in Mike’s honor. Get sharing! Mike was an amazing character and there are countless memories to share and laughs to be had, which I am sure Mike would completely appreciate! So get to it!
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Michael James Freeman lived out his 38 years with gusto. His life was filled with love and laughter, friends and family, music, good eats, and fine brews. Mike was quite good at many things: cooking, carpentry, and fixing most things—especially cars. But his main passion was for the arts; he was an actor, filmmaker, painter, producer, and his personal favorite—a rock star. His punk band Gina Go Faster, who toured the US, UK, and Europe had an amazing 13 years together. Patrons catching a show at the Lion’s Lair, Larimer Lounge, or the Bluebird, would most likely see fans moshing or singing “Yeah, yeahs” with Mike on stage, and definitely see Mike doing the splits while strumming his bass. Mike loved his family and friends very much; they were the subject of his songs. One of his songs, called “Nickels” was about taking his grandmother to Blackhawk to play slots on her 80th birthday. "A nickel does it better/But a quarter does the trick." It was an unlikely subject for a punk song, but it was a fan favorite. He was a sentimental, kind man who loved to make people laugh with not-so-tenderhearted stories. Always the performer, he’d have a captive audience patiently waiting for the punch line of a hilarious tale. Last year, when Mike was diagnosed with a brain tumor, his friends put together several benefits for him and raised enough money to take care of his medical costs. This and other outpourings of support proved just how many lives he touched: Jennifer Jordan, his beautiful fiancée, his sun, his moon, his everything and her everything too; Dan Fox, his dear friend and fund-raising champion; Joel Abell his “brother from another mother,” best friend, and fellow band mate; his brother and closest friend, Bill Freeman, who stayed at his home many nights and cooked alongside his wife, Kirsten; his parents Candi and Bill Freeman who held his musical hand through it all; his sister Holly Lancaster who took him out on lunch dates for spiritual chats, his sister Claire Dempsey who flew through the sky many times to talk about the old days; his loyal employers at the Flying Dog Brewery, who donated locations, food, and drinks for several events; the friends who fixed up his BMW 2002; the bands who donated their talent; the friends, family, and fans who gave money, cards, time, music, and kind words. Mike died while he was dreaming on September 9, 2009 next to the love of his life. He’ll always be a star.
After almost seven years of dating, Mike proposed to me at my childhood home in Texas before my parents moved to Portland, OR. It was pretty tense, all in all -- visiting my hometown, Christmas and all that it brings, the stress of coming up with a contribution to the Jordan Christmas program, not to mention that our bags (including his with the ring) were lost by the airline. But to Mike, probably the hardest thing was trying to find a moment to ask my dad for his permission. It is not easy to get a word in edgewise with John (who Mike lovingly called "Saint John"). After finally getting his blessing from my dad, Mike proposed to me in my childhood bedroom late on Christmas day. He got down on one knee, and smiled, and said: Are you going to marry me, or WHAT? :)
Mike died in the early hours of the morning. Just one day before, he was eating and drinking. Just a week before, he was singing along with GGF tunes on his iPod. But, as Mike told me, he "got to choose" when it was time to go, and this was the date.
The day I was to meet Mike, Joel proudly told me in advance that his best friend could projectile puke on demand. When Mike came home from college for a stint, he came over to Joel's and sure enough-he was able to puke on command-straight out of a window! I'm sure we started the night with some terrible and cheap beers like Rainier, then later on I remember an "ugly stick" being used to help provoke some puking actions, and then there was the puke in the shape of a tube going out of Joel's bedroom window. It was pretty silly but funny and we all had a lot of fun that summer hanging out, drinking a bit too much and acting crazy. The end. Nose crinkles apply *here*.
After almost seven years of dating, Mike proposed to me at my childhood home in Texas before my parents moved to Portland, OR. It was pretty tense, all in all -- visiting my hometown, Christmas and all that it brings, the stress of coming up with a contribution to the Jordan Christmas program, not to mention that our bags (including his with the ring) were lost by the airline. But to Mike, probably the hardest thing was trying to find a moment to ask my dad for his permission. It is not easy to get a word in edgewise with John (who Mike lovingly called "Saint John"). After finally getting his blessing from my dad, Mike proposed to me in my childhood bedroom late on Christmas day. He got down on one knee, and smiled, and said: Are you going to marry me, or WHAT? :)
Mike died in the early hours of the morning. Just one day before, he was eating and drinking. Just a week before, he was singing along with GGF tunes on his iPod. But, as Mike told me, he "got to choose" when it was time to go, and this was the date.
The day I was to meet Mike, Joel proudly told me in advance that his best friend could projectile puke on demand. When Mike came home from college for a stint, he came over to Joel's and sure enough-he was able to puke on command-straight out of a window! I'm sure we started the night with some terrible and cheap beers like Rainier, then later on I remember an "ugly stick" being used to help provoke some puking actions, and then there was the puke in the shape of a tube going out of Joel's bedroom window. It was pretty silly but funny and we all had a lot of fun that summer hanging out, drinking a bit too much and acting crazy. The end. Nose crinkles apply *here*.
I started to build my Tribute to Mike Freeman today.