Lt. Col. Michael Victor Sullivan, USMC-Ret, passed away unexpectedly at his Fallbrook, CA home, in the company of his wife, Barbara, Thursday evening, Jan. 14, 2016. Mike was 77 years old.

Born in New Haven, Ct, on May 31st, 1938, he grew up in Hamden, Ct. and graduated from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, in 1961 with a BS in agricultural business. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and enrolled in officer candidate school in Quantico, Va, earning his second lieutenant commission in December 1961. He married Barbara the following June.

He became a helicopter and fixed-wing pilot, and was serving in Vietnam in 1966-67 when his CH-46 helicopter was shot down and crashed into a rice paddy, earning him and his crew the Purple Heart Medal for wounds suffered in combat.

He rose through the ranks to become a Lt. Colonel, serving aboard the USS Inchon in the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean in the mid 1970s, serving in the security detail for President Richard Nixon's visit to Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in Cairo in 1974.

In 1982 he was assigned to Camp Pendleton, CA, where he commanded the Air Ground Team of the Marine Air Force aboard the USS Guadalcanal from 1982 to 1984. In 1988, he retired from the Marine Corps, and began a second life of extensive travel, golfing, gardening, reading, and visiting with the many, many friends he made and nurtured over his lifetime. He was an avid fan of theater and many sports as well.

He traveled throughout Europe, to Turkey, and to Mexico with Barbara and many of their friends. In 2012, to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary, Barbara and Mike took their daughters and their families to Ireland. This became a wonderful tradition over the next four years of summer travels to Europe with the children and grandchildren.

He and Barbara also traveled extensively every year in the United States, renewing his connections with family and old friends. He was an avid golfer throughout his retirement, and won the Camp Pendleton D Flight champion trophy in 2014. He golfed nine holes on the Monday and 18 holes on the Tuesday before he passed away.

Mike was tirelessly outgoing and loyal – he loved striking up conversations with strangers around the world, asking and offering restaurant suggestions or sightseeing advice. He was an inveterate storyteller – stories from the many adventures he had in the military and his other travels, introducing friends to each other with detailed reminiscences, and even the cheap wines he loved to search out came with a story.

He was a steadfast husband and father and a light-hearted and generous grandfather.

He is survived by his devoted wife and best friend, Barbara; his daughter and son-in-law Sue Sullivan and Steve Sedam and grandchildren Willow and Harrison, of Fort Collins, CO; daughter Cynthia Balboa, Marcelo Balboa and grandsons Nick and Owen Balboa, of Superior, CO; his sister and brother-in-law Diane and Richard Filipkowski, of Bonita Springs, FL; his brother and sister-in-law David and Toby Sullivan, Lebanon, CT; nieces Siobhan and Stacey Sullivan and nephews Eric and Alex Filipkowski. He was preceded in death by his father, Michael J. Sullivan and mother Josephine P. Sullivan.

A small, family service was held over the weekend. We will plan a celebration of life in the coming months. We welcome the participation of friends and family in this event, and will post details of the planning process on Michael's Facebook page and here on this memorial page.

For anyone wishing to make a memorial contribution, Michael's favorite charities were the Semper Fi Fund, (https://semperfifund.org/) the Wounded Warrior Project (www.woundedwarriorproject.org) and Toys for Tots (www.toysfortots.org). Contributions to the American Heart Association (www.heart.org) would also be appreciated, in lieu of flowers.