Michael King Belknap died in Fairbanks on July 14, 2003, at the young age of 53. Known to friends and co-workers as “Mikey,” he drove a taxicab and touched the lives of Fairbanks residents since 1996.
Mike was born April 25, 1950, in Yonkers, N.Y. He grew up in New York, New Hampshire, Michigan, Colorado and California. Mike was a gourmet cook and the best oyster shucker in the state of Alaska. He was a voracious reader, thinker and practical joker. He moved to Alaska in 1996 to help out at his sister’s oyster farm in Prince William Sound, visited Fairbanks on the way, and never left.
As a cab driver, Mike enjoyed meeting people and helping them move about safely during the long hours of the night. He was known to befriend and counsel customers in times of need and assist people in distress. An important part of his life was to look out for and encourage young people in their efforts to lead clean, sober and responsible lives. He told his father recently, “Dad, I have found my calling. I never want to retire.”
He was preceded in death by mother, Helen Belknap, in 2000.
Mike is survived by daughter, Polly Belknap, of Chicago; son, Robert Belknap, of San Leandro, Calif.; father, Dan Belknap, of Redding, Calif.; brothers Bill Belknap of Terre Haute, Ind., John Belknap of Redding, Calif., and Andy Belknap of Sterling, Colo.; sisters Elizabeth Belknap of Fairbanks, Susie Sczawinski of Prince William Sound; and a group of dear friends throughout the Fairbanks community.
A memorial gathering will be held at the Dog Musher’s Hall on Farmers Loop on Saturday, Oct. 4, from 4 to 8 p.m. Please bring a potluck dish or beverage to share with Mike’s friends and family. His large family will also gather in California in spring 2004 on the 54th anniversary of Mike’s birth.
Edited on Aug 7th 2003, 07:14 by Hooloovoo