forMichaelBurke

From: Rich Hunter (August 2005)

I think it is fitting that I’m writing this e-mail en route to Manila…I know that Mike really enjoyed his time spent overseas. I had the true pleasure of being Mike’s most recent manager at Accenture, and I wanted to write a message expressing how honored I was to be Mike’s colleague and friend.

I met Mike on Valentine’s Day this year, and by the end of the day I felt like I was already one of Mike’s closest friends. As I tried to recall what made my relationship with Mike special, I realized that there was nothing truly special about our friendship…that was the amazing thing about Mike. Mike was such an outgoing and genuine guy, that everyone who met him felt like they had known him forever. He was always honest and friendly to everyone and had a positive impact on people, even if you had only known him for a short time. I only knew Mike for the past 6 months or so, but his passing has affected me deeply, and knowing him I honestly believe has changed the way I look at work and life.

You can certainly be proud of Mike for the wonderful things he did at work. He made very day fun with his jokes and his funny comments. But he wasn’t a class clown—he really did a great job helping clients. I know that may not seem important now, but the work we did could be difficult at times, and all of us clients and Accenture folks felt better knowing that Mike was with us on the project. He had a profound impact on everyone—I know that by their reaction at hearing of his death. There was a huge outpouring from everyone at work, even those that only knew him for a few months or even a couple of weeks.

I’ve attached a picture of Mike that should give you a laugh. When my wife asked me if I had a picture of Mike, ironically enough this was the only one that I had to show her. I got a kick out of telling her about the funny day we had when it was taken. The client had just put us consultants into a basement training room that doubled as a fallout shelter, and we just had to document the surroundings. We took pictures of the various paraphernalia in the room, and Mike just had to get his picture taken in front of this ridiculous poster. It is a classic silly look that symbolizes how he didn’t take himself too seriously in life and just loved every minute of it. That day was really a nothing day in life—not “the first” anything or “the best” anything or “an important” anything—but it was typical of every day with Mike. Days that I will deeply, truly miss.

Mike was a wonderful person that I was privileged to have known for even a short time. Thank you for raising a wonderful person and sharing him with all of us. I can’t even imaging how difficult the days are for you, but hopefully knowing that Mike had a profound impact on so many people’s lives can help in some way. Know that you all are in my prayers, and I look forward to seeing Mike again in the next life. I’m sure he’s cracking people up there right now.

Rich
Accenture