Michael "Mike" Haer

So many words come to mind when thinking about the life of Michael (Mike) Haer, who died suddenly from a heart attack on August 6, 2024 in Richardson, TX, at age 71. A lawyer, an FBI special agent, a Chinese linguist, and a foreign service diplomat, he lived a life of public service and adventure.

Son of Earleen and Darrell Haer, both deceased, Mike was born in Fairfax, Mo., on September 28, 1952, and grew up in Gladstone, Mo. He married his Oak Park High School sweetheart, Debbie, who was the love of his life for 43 years. Mike earned a degree in education from the University of Missouri, Columbia, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta Fraternity. He cherished his Phi Delt friendships—tales of ski adventures and Indy 500 trips are just a few of the memories that will live on in his “brothers.”

He received his Juris Doctorate from University of Missouri, Kansas City, and practiced law in Kansas City. His law degree quickly led him to one of his lifelong goals, and in 1982 he became an FBI special agent. Serving in the Kansas City, Houston, and Washington, D.C., offices, he worked in counterintelligence and on undercover assignments. While with the FBI, he attended language school, where he became fluent in Chinese and fell in love with the Monterey Coast.

Although he loved his work at the FBI, he yearned to work overseas—in 1989, he joined the U.S. Agency for International Development as a fraud investigator. His foreign service career took him overseas, and he lived in Singapore (where his twin sons were born), Thailand, and the Philippines. He traveled to nearly 100 countries; it’s no wonder that some characterized Mike’s life as a combination of Indiana Jones and James Bond! It’s doubtful, though, that they would have collected flight sickness bags from every exotic airline like he did.

A devoted brother, husband, and father, he loved his sons “to the moon and back.” After retiring from government service, he joined Texas Instruments in Dallas. It was in Dallas that Mike, an Eagle Scout, guided his sons and other scouts on the trail to Eagle. As adults, the boys continued to love hiking and camping with their dad, where they would often share craft beers and long talks around the campfire.

Mike was the rare person who was universally liked, and he will be sorely missed. He is survived by his loving wife, Debbie; his beloved twin sons, Nicholas and Alex (wife Melissa); and his sister, Dara White. Services will be held at Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church, 3901 North Star Road, Richardson, TX, at 3 pm, Friday, September 13, 2024. For those wishing to make a memorial donation, the family suggests the National Park Foundation, the Boy Scouts Circle 10 Council, or your local scout troop.