Don Michael \Mike\ Chase, 80, passed away on May 19, 2018. A memorial service will be held at 10:00 am on Friday, May 25, 2018 at St. Nicholas Episcopal Church, 4000 W Loop 250 N, Midland Texas, 79707.Mike was born on October 3, 1937 in Great Bend, Kansas to Dean and Dorothy Chase. His family moved to the Midland/Odessa area when he was a young boy. Mike attended school In Midland, graduating from Midland High School in 1955. He and Susanne Geddes were married in 1973—creating a new, blended family that included his three children and her two children.Mike used his mechanical intuition throughout his lifelong journey as the Master of Fixing Things. Over the decades he held jobs including oilfield work and repairing construction machinery and airplanes. But he may have been best known around Midland as the Lawnmower Whisperer. He rarely met a lawnmower he couldn't fix, and he almost always made a new friend with each lawnmower he brought back to life.When not tinkering in his home garage, Mike enjoyed flying radio-controlled airplanes—many of which he built himself. He was a member of the Hi-Sky Radio Control Aircraft Club. He was a self-taught virtuoso on the harmonica, and after decades of practice he was surely the best whistler of \Faded Love\ on the planet. In the latter decades of his life, he enjoyed spending time in the company of his seven granddaughters. He probably holds the world's record for drinking imaginary cups of tea and coffee and eating plates of delicious imaginary food served to him by those beloved girls.He is survived by Susanne Chase, his wife of 45 years. He is also survived by his sister, Kathleen Grimes of Midland. Other surviving family members include sons James Chase, Don Chase, and Steve Geddes of Midland; daughters Donna Chase Womack of Paris, Texas and Anne Geddes Bunce of Austin; daughter-in-law Missy Geddes of Midland; and son-in-law Tony Womack of Paris, Texas. He is also survived by his granddaughters Lauren and Amber Holcomb of Mansfield, Texas; Kirsten, Skylar, and Eli Geddes of Midland; and Caroline and Sydney Bunce of Austin. He will also be missed by a large and loving extended family.He is preceded in death by his parents, Dean and Dorothy, and his brother D.A. Chase.Mike's family would like to express their gratitude to Hospice of Midland and the nursing staff at Midland Memorial Hospital. They are grateful also for the love and support of the Reverend Mother Nancy Springer and all the ministry staff and congregants at St. Nicholas Episcopal Church. Many thanks also to the friends, neighbors, and fellow church members who have called, visited, brought meals, and otherwise supported Mike and Susanne in his last days and his family in this week following his passing.In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hospice of Midland or the Midland Humane Coalition—Mike adopted many stray cats over the years, and his sweet boy Bobo is missing him fiercely right now.Arrangements are under the direction of Nalley-Pickle & Welch Funeral Home & Crematory of Midland. Online condolences may be made at www.npwelch.com.,
