Michael E Wood

If you had a football question, Mike Wood had the answer. He was that much of fan. While the Dallas Cowboys was his team when he was growing up, he was well versed in the nuances of nearly every team and ended up following all teams. That knowledge died with Mike on Aug. 24, 2022. He was 68.

Michael Ehrick Wood was born Sept. 15, 1953, in Wethersfield, Vt. He grew up in Pomfret, Vt. It was there that his love of football began. He played football at Woodstock Union High School, as well as ran track.

After graduation in 1971, he enlisted in the Navy during the Vietnam era. He spent the bulk of his 20-year career on submarines. During his tenure Mike earned a naval scholastic accommodation to attend the University of Kansas in Lawrence. He majored in and completed the prestigious Navy Enlisted and Scientific Education Program (NESEP) in electrical engineering in 1979. His specialized training and experience took him on tours of duty throughout the world on nuclear submarines. He spent the bulk of his naval career stationed in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., before going to the Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Conn. The latter is known as the submarine capital of the world. Mike retired from the Navy as a lieutenant in November 1991. His tenure in the Navy was the catalyst for his second career. He spent 22 years as an electrical engineer, primarily working for General Dynamics in Groton, Conn. He retired from the defense contractor in 2017.

After retiring, Mike and Lorraine Desjardins, his wife of 34 years, moved to Montrose, Colo. This was where his parents and sisters had moved to after his high school graduation, so a town he had frequented and knew he would one day like to call home. Mike enjoyed hiking, hunting, snow skiing, water skiing, playing card games and billiards, as well as spending time with family. He was good at telling quirky jokes, what today people call “dad jokes.” While highly intelligent, Mike relished the simple pleasures in life, like spotting an elk in the wild or watching a child discover a new toy.

He was preceded in death by son David Wood, father Lawrence Wood, sister Sandra Amish, and first wife Sandi Eilenberger.

Mike is survived by his wife, Lorraine Desjardins, of Montrose, Colo.; son Jeff Wood of Kingwood, Texas; mother Merle Wood of Carson City, Nev.; sister Susan Wood of Santa Rosa, Calif.; stepdaughter Jocelyne Braffith of Uncasville, Conn.; stepgrandchildren Anaiyah and Jovani Echavarria of Uncasville, Conn.; nephew James Austin of Grants
Pass; and niece Jennica McClure of Rogue River, Ore.

Services will be private.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to your chapter of the National Alliance of Mental Illness or to the national organization online: https://donate.nami.org/give/197406/#!/donation/checkout?utm_source=globalNav&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=DonationTracking&c_src=WEBDG