Michael Todd Wright

On June 1, 2020 Michael “Mike” Wright passed away in a fatal accident in Pensacola, Florida. He was 65 and is preceded in death by his father Edward Wright. He is survived by his wife Jo Ann Wright, his mother Rona Wright, his brother Thomas Wright, his sister Janet Nelson, daughters Samantha Wright, MayB Sersland, Heather Sersland, and his Grandchildren Tylyn Sersland, Steven Whiting, and Samantha Seip-Bayes.

Born in San Diego, California September 13, 1954 to Edward and Rona Wright. He considered El Cajon, California as home. Mike graduated from Monte Vista High School and then went on to enlist in the Navy in 1973. Mike worked his way up through the enlisted ranks earning the rank of Senior Chief and a Bachelor of Science from Southern Illinois University in 1987. In 1991 Mike was commissioned to the rank of Ensign after completing his second bachelors, becoming a Physician’s Assistant (PA), from George Washington University. Mike earned his Master of Science in Physician’s Assistant Studies from University of Nebraska in 1999. He continued to work as a PA in the Navy until his retirement in October of 1999. During his time in the Navy Mike and family had the opportunity to travel the world with duty stations in Taiwan, Japan, Iceland, Scotland, California, Washington, Colorado, and Maryland. After his retirement with the Navy Mike continued to work as a civilian PA until retiring from medicine in 2012.

Mike had many hobbies some of which include cycling, shooting, and most importantly diving. Mike started recreational diving in 1994. Upon (first) retirement he was able to invest more time into diving and started to pursue the path of instructor. Combining his passions for teaching and diving he earned multiple PADI certifications achieving the level of Master Scuba Instructor. He also became the owner of Blue Octopus Scuba in Alexandria, Virginia. He dedicated himself to his dive shop, teaching, and helped introduce many others to the joy of diving and his passion for it.

Mike will be buried at sea at Neptune Memorial Reef in Biscayne Bay off the coast of Miami, Florida. Mike has a memorial fund to Project Aware to help preserve the sea that he loved. Donations can be made to https://bit.ly/MichaelTWright