Michael M. Hungiville

Palmer resident, Michael M. Hungiville, 63, died peacefully Jan. 17, 2017 at Mat-Su Regional Hospital after a brief illness. Michael was born in Bradford Pennsylvania May 1, 1953 to James and Michele Hungiville.

He grew up in Buffalo, New York and graduated from Orchard Park High School. Mike traveled west and lived mostly in Leadville, Colorado; he also spent a number of years residing in Alaska. Mike was a free spirit who loved music, hiking in the woods and mountains, reading, and writing fiction. He often said he was influenced by Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road” and that inspiration was evident in both his life and his writing.

Mike earned a BA in English with a minor in writing from University of Northern Colorado, Greely. He worked as a teacher, tutor, and construction worker; he especially enjoyed teaching GED to adult students.

Michael is survived by his parents, Jim and Michele Hungiville of Hamburg New York; sister, Julie LeMay of Palmer; niece Eowyn Ivey, her husband Sam, and daughters Grace and Aurora- all of Chickaloon; nephew, Forrest LeMay of Palmer; as well as many friends in Leadville, Buffalo, and Alaska.

There will be a celebration of life at Hatcher Pass in May 2017. His ashes will be placed in the mountains where he loved to spend his days sauntering alone with a daypack. Mike captured these moments in nature when he wrote,

“As the sun begins to set behind the valley on my left, I feel as if I belong to the woods, am a part of them, that I have been here all my life, indeed I can not conceive of any other life.”

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Mike’s memory to Lake County Public Library in Leadville (http://www.lakecountypubliclibrary.org) or your own local library.