It is with devastating regret that I’m even delivering this news right now.  On February 24th, shortly after 8am in the morning, Mike passed away unexpectedly in the hospital at the age of 42.

His true passion was for technology, specifically Active Directory, and his dream in life was to work at Microsoft!  He was a 5X Directory Services MVP before coming to Microsoft, and getting the MVP award isn’t an easy task.  It’s a fundamental dedication to the community, and he has definitely earned his achievements.  Here are but a few of examples of his presence in the community:

http://www.experts-exchange.com/members/mkline71.html

http://adisfun.blogspot.com

https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/askpfeplat/tag/mike-kline/

https://www.reddit.com/user/MKmsftFan

https://twitter.com/mekline

https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Profile/mike%20kline

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikline

Outside of work, Mike was a lover of animals, having both dogs and cats.  He loved his music, his friends, and pizza!  We frequently compared notes on pizza joints around the Northern VA area, but no matter what, Giovanni’s was his number one for life – there was no convincing him otherwise.

He was the type of guy that would give you the shirt off his back and expect nothing in return!  He was also very proud, and he would rarely if ever accept help from anyone else.  He didn’t even want to let us visit him in the hospital, which I now regret not going, regardless of his wishes.

Mike was also a fierce supporter of our nation’s Military, having supported the USMC on our team at Microsoft, and more importantly, his own personal service to the United States, as a soldier in the US Army.  With that said, he’ll be receiving military honors at his funeral.

Mike, you may not be here in the physical world anymore, but we know that you’re here in spirit, and will be for a long time to come!  We’re going to miss you immensely, but your passing won’t be happening in silence.  All of Microsoft will know, as well as many others around the world, with a publishing of your legacy on Microsoft.com and many other sites.  The flags across Microsoft campuses will also be at half-mast in your memory.  You won’t be forgotten!

-Eric