Michael Christopher Chase

Michael Christopher Chase, 36, of Jonesboro, formerly of Corvallis, Oregon passed away on Thursday, August 6, 2020 at St. Bernards Medical Center in Jonesboro, Arkansas.

Mike was born to Ray and Pam Chase on June 2, 1984 in Bristol, Connecticut. He moved to Jonesboro from Terryville CT as an adolescent, and fiercely clung to his New England roots, never fully acclimating. He moved back north as soon as he could, and lived just outside Boston for six years before falling in love with the Pacific Northwest and relocating to Oregon in 2014.

Towering over everyone at 6’6 with a giant red beard, people felt Mike’s presence wherever he went, especially when he accompanied his parents on a trip to Vietnam, China, and Hong Kong in summer 2011. He readily agreed to take photos with the locals in exchange for coconuts, figuring they were understandably stunned at seeing such an imposing figure and he might as well indulge them. He would be greatly amused at the thought of himself living on forever in photos on Asian social media sites.

With his friends and family, Mike was the opposite of imposing. He was warm, welcoming, and quick to offer a joke, regardless of whether the situation called for it. He willingly shared his strengths with those he loved, including providing hours of free tech support to family members, helping his mother beat extra tough video game levels, and giving what everyone reading this knows were the best hugs in the world.

He was an avid sports fan, and never abandoned his love for New England sports, or the Baltimore Ravens (we’re not sure how that got in there). Combining his love of sports journalism and the Red Sox, he started a blog, SoxAddict, which was readby the organization, players, and fans alike, and earned him invitations to Red Sox players’ charity events and an official press badge. Mike had the chance to attend a World Series game in 2013 at Fenway, the first of the series that the Red Sox went on to win, and he described it as one of the best nights of his life, despite the outrageous ticket price.

Mike was also incredibly adventurous, and loved to travel and experience other cultures. He traveled the United States extensively on a roadtrip with his wife in 2013, seeing a dozen National Parks en route, and only had two more states on his list left to visit (Hawaii and North Dakota, but he’d joke and say “so basically, just Hawaii”). In addition to his trip to Asia with his parents in 2011, Mike and his wife also made a somewhat laughable attempt to hike the Pembrokeshire Coastal Trail in Wales that same year. Though they came nowhere near close to completing it, Mike considered the trip a success regardless because he succeeded in getting his wife to try Indian food for the first time, which remains her favorite to this day. Mike was always willing to try something new, and never shied away from a culinary adventure, whether it was a ghost chili in New Mexico, breast milk ice cream in London, or insects from a street vendor in China. He’d encourage you to be as daring as he was, but Mike always jumped in first so you didn’t have to.

In addition to his wife, the loves of Mike’s life were his dogs: Taffy, Sammie, and Scout. Mike had a soft spot for animals of all kinds, but especially loved dogs, and they felt the same way about him. Where he sometimes had limited patience for people, he had endless patience and compassion for animals. He loved to bring Scout to the Oregon Coast and let her run on the beach for hours playing fetch, and it was close to impossible for him to cross paths with any dog without attempting to befriend it. Whenever he’d see a missing dog poster, he’d suppress his anxiety about making phone calls for a few minutes to call the number and ask if the dog had been found. If not, he’d be out looking for hours.

Because of Mike’s love for dogs, In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in his name to the Heartland Humane Society, where he adopted Scout in 2014:

Heartland Humane Society
398 SW Twin Oaks Circle
Corvallis, OR 97333.

Michael is survived by his best friend and wife, Suzanna Chase of Corvallis, Oregon; parents, Ray and Pam Chase of Jonesboro; sister, Vivi (and husband, Dan ) and niece, Kaelin Britton of Millington, Tennessee. Michael also leaves behind a close family of aunts, uncles, and cousins, as well as hundreds of friends, near and far, who all loved him and will miss him greatly.

A celebration of life will be held in Massachusetts for friends and family once travel can be safely resumed.

He will be missed by all.