Michael (Mike) William Doherty, 66 of Tallahassee, Florida passed away December 10, 2018 following a short illness. He was born October 2, 1952 in Detroit, Michigan. He was predeceased by his parents, William (Bill) and Lorraine Doherty.
He was married to Susan Sherer Doherty on June 16, 1979. They would have been married 40 years in 2019. Mike cherished Susan and they could always be seen together, often holding hands. They acquired nicknames “Frick & Frack”, because they did everything together. Mike loved his family dearly and was proud of all of them. He has three sons, David Lee Doherty, his wife Ann, Patrick Jon Doherty, Michael Paul Doherty, and one daughter, Teresa Doherty Speir and her husband Brad. He adored his two grandchildren, Kiera Doherty and Peyton Speir.
He was one of seven children and was survived by Karen Filloon, Judy Doherty, Kevin Doherty (Laurie), Jeff Doherty (Julie), Chris Adcock (Mike), and Cory Hartsfield (Ricky). He loved Susan’s family just as much, he was predeceased by her parents, Ed and Beverly Sherer and three of her siblings, Mary McCreary, Rita Quijano and Walter Sherer. He was survived by Helen Sherer, Patti Evans and John Sherer. He also had 18 nieces and nephews and was recognized as the tickle monster and known to “get the toes”.
Mike worked in transportation planning, first for Florida Department of Transportation and then for URS which later became Aecom. He enjoyed the people he worked with and considered many of them friends. He liked his work and the challenge of each puzzle associated with transportation, both confirming current routes and the effect of growth and the vision of new roads and the impact to people’s future.
Mike’s free time was spent in many fun and exciting activities. He loved the outdoors, hunting, fishing, and hiking. He fished on his boat and had a full supply of every rod, reel, hook, line and any other accessory that might help you catch a fish. He liked the peace and quiet of being on the water with a line in and letting the mind wander. Occasionally he caught a fish and then released it.
He shared hiking with Boy Scouts Troop 105, training scouts to hike the trails and taught many of them the art of packing for a long hike. Some of them known as the “fleet feet” hiked the full Appalachian Trail.
Mike who was quite the history enthusiast participated in Mountain Man Rendezvous. It was 100% period time, and everything had to be done in that period, clothing, cooking, sleeping, activities and games. He loved taking his children to “rendezvous” and his prized creation was his Teepee where he hand-peeled all the poles.
His favorite outdoor sport was baseball, not as a player, but as a fan. He and Susan had season tickets to the FSU baseball team and rarely missed a home game. They had talked about going to Omaha in 2019, hoping that Mike Martin would get his championship in his final year. He also had a favorite professional team in each of the six divisions. He kept track of each team and was excited when he got to attend one in person. He had an annual trip to the Tampa Bay Rays with his wife, Susan and his brother, Kevin and wife Laurie.
His favorite travel was to North Carolina to visit his grandson, Peyton. In addition to numerous trips to North Carolina he frequented Knoxville, Tennessee to visit the extended Doherty family, especially his Aunt Sid and Uncle Chuck. They often attended minor league baseball games together. And in the same area, Mike loved visiting Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and the Great Smoky mountains, including the valley of Cades Cove.
Visitation will be Tuesday, 12/18/18 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm and the prayer service will be Wednesday, 12/19/18 at 11:00 am. Both will be held at Culley’s MeadowWood Funeral Home, 700 Timberlane Road, Tallahassee, FL 32312. Business casual, no suit or ties (it just wasn’t Mike).
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Mike’s name to Big Bend Hospice, Tallahassee, Florida.
Mike and Susan could often be found facing West to watch a beautiful sunset. Enjoy the next one, Mike just might have had something to do with it.
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