Play Time...

Watching Mike play with the boys was always comforting and fun. Here Mikey taunts Darby and Jake with the vaccuum cleaner. -Steve

"I'm a Cat, I'm a Kitty Cat, and meow meow meow, and a meow meow meow..."

Sporting the New Tat...

One morning as Nick put the finishing touches on one of Mikey's last tats, I was convinced to get my nipples pierced by a very persuasive Mikey, - thanks buddy that shit still hurts... -Steve

Mike Had Some Stranger Eating Habits Sometimes...

Who said whipped cream in the morning isnt healthy? –Steve

One of Mikeys Many Talents.......

Mike always had a way to make you smile, and peculiar decorating talent. -Steve

Engraved in our lives forever.

Your memory burns bright boy, with every sunset, your spirit rises and soars above the skies and beyond.....you are missed. -Steve

The Koi Fish

It can almost be considered a Navy tradition to get a tattoo. Mike had several. The last one he got was of a Koi fish. Traditionally seen in the Irezumi style from Japan, Mike's was a variation in that is black and gray.



The Japanese consider it the most spirited of fish, so full of energy and power that it can fight its way up swift-running streams and cascades. According to Japanese legend if a koi succeeded in climbing the falls at a point called Dragon Gate on the Yellow River it would be transformed into a dragon. Because of its strength and determination to overcome all obstacles, it stands for courage and the ability to attain high goals. The Koi is an appropriate symbol to encourage the overcoming of life's difficulties leading to consequent success.

More generally, the Japanese associate koi with perseverance in adversity and strength of purpose. Because of its strength and determination to overcome obstacles, it stands for courage and the ability to attain high goals.

Perseverance in Adversity. Strength of Purpose. Courage. Remember Mikey.

Rescue Swimmer

A group photo with a new MH-60s Knighthawk HELO arriving for the SAR teams.



Look close sitting inside the HELO, there's our Mike!


The Search and Rescue patch Mikey wore:

Mikey's Memorial Program

Special thanks to RP2(SW) Maila M. Castillo for sending me the program.

Page One:

The Patches at the bottom are for the Search and Rescue, US Navy and Naval Air Station Whidbey Island.


Page Two:

Order of Service

Prelude: Corinne Bailey Rae

Opening Prayer: Chaplain Brad Yorton
Hymn of Faith: “Amazing Grace”

Command Tribute: CDR Pete Turner

Scripture Reading: Psalm 23

Pastoral Consolation: Chaplain Philip King

Professional Tribute: ATC Robert Kent

Personal Tributes: Remembering Michael

The Navy Hymn : “Eternal Father, Strong to Save”

Closing Prayer: Chaplain Brad Yorton

Postlude Corinne Bailey Rae

Rendering of Honors : Chapel Lawn


Page Three:


Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace! How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was Blind but now I see.

Thru many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
Tis grace hath brought me safe this far,
And grace will lead me home.


Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.


Eternal Father, Strong to Save

Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bidd’st the mighty ocean deep
It’s own appointed limits keep,
O hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea!

Page Four:


AW2 Michael Freeman

Michael was born to John and Royceann Freeman in Phoenix, AZ on October 3, 1975. He has a sister, Meggon Freeman. He graduated from Andress High School in El Paso, TX in 1995. Two years later, Michael entered into the Navy 01 May 1997. He reported to Great Lakes, IL for basic training, then to NATTC, Pensacola, FL. Michael’s first duty assignment took him to SC-8, Norfolk, VA. He ultimately arrived at NAS Whidbey Island, WA which he considered home. Michael is survived by his mother Royceann, sister Meggon and Aunt Lynnell as well as his extended family: Marty Staniforth, Brian Crooks, Shawn O’Connell, Kristine Moreland and Brianna Krogman.

SAR Honor Platoon
LCDR Todd Vorenkamp
LT Kiersten Whitacre
LT James Thompson
AW1 Lance Tanner
AW1 Mihcael Glidwell
AW3 Buddy Moore

Leading Petty Officer
AT2 Jere Tien

Firing Party
AEAN Chandler Riggins
ACAN Michaela Mackovich
MRFN Nathan Magers

Command Tribute: Commander Pete Turner

AW2 Michael Freeman

XO, Chaplain, Megan, Friends and Shipmates, The Commanding Officer, Captain Syd Abernethy and all of us in uniform thank you all for coming. He is currently on the east coast, but sends his deepest sympathies.

Here we are, all stunned and in disbelief that this happened. It would be nice to tie this up neatly and make sense of the passing of a truly outstanding young man. Why Michael? There are no easy answers. In the bible, Saint Paul is quoted as saying “Behold, I tell you a mystery”.

We’re all looking for answers and can’t explain this away. We are torn up over this tragedy. A certain emptiness exists in the SAR hangar.

Every day is a gift; we are only promised one day at a time. Life is indeed transitory.

None of us can make this better for Megan. What we can do, as Navy brethren, is to stand with you in solidarity and celebrate the life of Michael Freeman and honor his memory.

As a youngster, Michael faced many difficulties in life. And yet he persevered. He found his stride in the Navy. His list of accomplishments in the Navy is truly distinguished. He quickly earned his Wings of Gold and qualified as a jet engine mechanic, Plane Captain and Naval Aircrewman in three different helicopters.

Additionally, he was hand selected as a both a Helicopter Inland Rescue Aircrewman and Rescue Swimmer. His record is full of 4.0 exams and flight evaluations, culminating with his earning his EAWS wings. And to no one’s surprise, Mike received an outstanding on his Physical Readiness Tests. It’s a safe bet that Mike pumped more iron at Whidbey Island than most of us pump in a lifetime. If you’ve ever split wood, you know what a wedge is. Mike had the silhouette of a wedge, possessing overwhelming strength. I’m afraid with him gone, GNC protein stock might never recover.

Mike was a real work horse in the Search and Rescue hangar. The image of him completing an inspection on a Knighthawk helicopter against a darkened sky is seared in many of our memories. It was too dark to see his face, but based on the shoulders being twice the size of his waist, you knew it was Aviation Warfare Systems Operator Michael Freeman.

And when you later launched into that night sky, it was comforting to know that Michael was onboard and had signed off the inspections.

The tone in his voice during dynamic situations in the air is the same tone that orders a glass of iced tea. He embodied grace under pressure. He also could always be counted on for sage and honest advice. As his shipmates can attest, be careful bouncing a girlfriend problem off of him, he might just side with your girlfriend.

Perhaps his greatest asset, Mike possessed a positive, can-do attitude towards everything.

He was an outstanding naval aircrewman, loyal friend, loving brother, and faithful son.

His legacy and can-do attitude will always endure. We miss you Mike. God bless.

Men and women in uniform, please rise for the following award…

Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal

Pastoral Consolation: Chaplain Philip King

The beginning of this week, AW2 Michael Freeman died of several strokes, surrounded by his sister, his Commanding Officer, and his best friends. In this place we now gather our many different beliefs, and join them in aprayer of hope. This ceremony is not a time for explanations or justifications, though our questions hang just outside reach; and this is not a time of recriminations or accusations, although anger is part of our emotions; this place is a sanctuary, and for this service we must seek to lay aside the judgment that can so fill wounded hearts. We are here to find God's peace amid the broken fragments of shattered hope. And in finding peace, then carrying on. Today, create sanctuary in your heart for Michael's life and his memories.

This Chapel is a place of safety, where we come to honor our shipmate and friend. Some of you knew him well, others -like me- not at all; but we gather with his sister Meggon, his dear friends, his squadron and shipmates as his community, his extended family, because we together must squarely face the circumstances of his death without losing the essence of his life; for his life, like all lives, are a gift; and here, now, we seek to release Michael's spirit from among us, while still retaining those feelings and memories which continue to have power to endear him to our hearts.

AE1 Olmstead (Michael's LPO) told me that Michael was an outstanding Petty Officer and Aircrew man. For those who may not know, men like Michael comes to work not knowing what crisis might fill their day; and it's not unusual for them to end up hovering over flaming wreckage, or a wrecked snowmobile planning a rescue. Men like Michael will jump from an aircraft into freezing water with fuel burning on top, to save an injured pilot with little regard for his own safety. Michael's life was defined by his dedication to others, his intense sense of obligation and commitment, and his amazing good nature. But then many of you already know this abouthim. I was told Michael had three great loves; he was devoted to his dogs- indeed his only request of the shop on his behalf was to be able to go home at lunch so he could let his dogs out. He loved working out, and AE1 told me his favorite exercise was hanging from a bar with inversion boots and doing sit-ups. And Michael was particular about eating well and using nutrition supplements; he planned in fact to get out of the Navy and go to College to major in Physical Education and health, and be a personal trainer. It is truly ironic that one so dedicated to preserving life and to good health should be taken by a stroke; and we who remain are left to ponder this fragility of life. His loss is the loss of his family, it is the loss of his friends here; it is the loss of his colleagues at SAR, and his shipmates in the lineshack; today we are all less for his tragic and untimely death.

George C. Scott once remarked that the human spirit is stronger than anything that can happen to it; including death. And if anyone epitomized that declaration, it was Michael Freeman. This afternoon, we gather in the quiet of this place to pay our tribute and respect to this child of God. At 29, Michael Freeman entered this stage of history not so many years ago, and in his brief life, he was privileged to act on this mortal stage, and to play his part exceedingly well. Now the curtain falls; he moves through the exit; the drama of his earthly lifecomes to a close. But his passion for duty and excellence is some of the essence of him that remains. Though Michael is now committed back to that eternity from which he came, we here are his witnesses that his life touched and changed this world for the better; the new friends his crisis has drawn together - his beautiful dogs that Brianna and her husband are adopting - the space in our hearts where his absence echoes and calls us to believe in a better day.

Every country, every race has its own way of burying their dead. The rear sepulchers and shrouds, graves and mausoleums. The American Indians sent their deceased to the great hunting ground in the sky; sailors go to Davy Jones Locker. The Norsemen sent their dead to Valhalla while in Greek legend their spirits found their Heaven in the Elysian Fields. Yet whether we believe in the Buddhist Nirvana or the Christian Paradise we all share the same feelings of loss and grief when we lose someone we love, someone we knew, someone that touched our lives.

This memorial gives us away to express that grief and to say our good-byes, or to simply stand in silence before the mystery of life and death. Such a tribute belongs to Michael's friends and colleagues, to all of you; for you are his church, his congregation, his family. Michael Freeman contributed to our lives, to the mission of the Navy, to the security of our country; but he did much more, by touching the lives he met with friendship and love. It is fitting that we should publicly proclaim and honor him, as well as remember and take from here his friendship in our hearts. Many have died serving our great nation, and are unfortunately not the last. Michael stands among them. It is our duty now to catch the torch he was privileged to hold, honor our brother, remember his hope, and carry on.

Chaplain Philip King

Photographs of Mikey's Memorial Service

My tiny token for all of Mikey's friends and family. My apologies for not getting more pictures inside the chapel.








































Mikey's spirit takes flight. It was a symbolic moment for everyone.
















You can't help but smile when you meet Mikey's boys.






(The original full resolution digtial pictures are to big to email. We will gladly send a CD of them, please contact us to let us know if you would like one.)