Remembering Michael Doyle

Chris McGoff Captures Michael's Professional Celebration

Chris has shared some great pictures of the Friday, April 27 event on Treasure island where Michael's professional community honored him with a retrospective. Chris facilitated the event. Check it out by clicking here.

Bill Seibert's Letter to the Phi Kaps -- Michael's Frat Brothers

Shared by Bill, Michael's college frat brother, following Michael's Professional Commemoration Celebration April 27, 2007.

Michael was a student in the College of Design, Art and Architecture at the University of Cincinnati in the mid-60’s. He joined Phi Kappa Theta fraternity. The Phi Kaps were mostly local guys from working class families. Many of us were co-op students, alternating between school and work every eight weeks.
We worried about getting a date, paying tuition, making grades and avoiding the Army draft. We drank local 3.2% alcohol beer at Fries Cafe. A bottle  was $0.25 and a pitcher of Hudepohl draft was a buck. (Get moody with Hudy was their slogan.)

Fred Mitouer Honors Michael

    I am honored to be here today with all of you—dear friends of our dear friend, Michael Doyle.
    “When two or more are gathered in his name, he is present.”
    In this spirit, I’d like to invoke in all of you the appreciation you have for Michael’s presence in your life. We are here by intention to remember and praise the singularly rare and unique gifts that Michael bestowed on us either directly or by challenging us to find this blessing within ourselves.
    A Sufi aphorism tells us that
“When the heart weeps for what it has lost, the spirit laughs for what it has found.”
    Let us have our tears and let us have our laughter.

Cris Beam—For Michael

I can’t believe Michael’s gone. I remember his laugh, and the way his teeth protruded slightly, like they couldn’t wait to jump out of his mouth and show you their smile.

Everything about Michael was about moving forward. His body, his beautiful round belly, was a jubilant exclamation, “Here I am!” and his heart, you could almost see it, shone out of his ribcage like a small sun.

April 27 Ceremony for Michael Doyle

Friday April 27, 2007 A large group gathered at the Casa La Vista on Treasure Island in San Francisco to honor the passing of Michael Doyle—consultant, visionary, entrepreneur, coach, counsellor, and outrageous master of high play. He died on January 29, 2007 and this blog has been a gathering place for the many who were influenced and shaped by his extraordinary energy and charisma.

This was a professional wake, a conscious remembering of the way in which Michael's life has mirrored an era of unusual inventiveness and contribution. We all told his story, and it was our story, and his death seems to have scattered firebrands of consciousness and connection. "He was always first, and he was one of the first of us to go" one of his friends reflected. "I do believe he might have decided that he could get more done on the subtler plane."

In commemoration, a design team composed of Juli Betwee, Michael's "first and only wife" of 16 years, Meredith and Dan Beam, David Sibbet, Chris McGoff, Andrea Dyer, Cindy Wilson, and Susan Cardelli planned a several hour story telling process followed by a forward looking cafe to say goodbye to our dear friend and mentor. We gathered early on Saturday to begin collaging the history from photos and report covers and other memorabilia. Around 2:00 some 60 people arrived. Juli opened with a wonderful and touching rememberance and thanks. She then turned the afternoon over to Chris McGoff, one of Michael's close colleagues these past years to facilitate the storytelling. As the recorder working with Chris, I was able to create digital copies here that you can read to remember the event, or review it if you weren't able to come.

Just click on the photos and they will appear in a larger window and are mostly readable. We are working on a print ready version you could download and print.