Obituary of Michael ray farrow

Michael Ray Farrow was born in Bardwell, KY. The son of Mildred Utterback, a well-to-do Southern socialite and James Farrow, who was the son of a poor railroad worker. He was quite literally, from the other side of the tracks. When Mike was 5, his father earned an Engineering degree from Murray State University and got a job working for NASA. The family couldn’t afford to live in Huntsville so they settled in Athens, Alabama because it was cheaper and my grandfather could carpool to work with all the other broke engineers working for NASA at the time. Dad led an idyllic childhood in Athens. He had lots of friends, nine dogs (NINE DOGS!) and an older brother that he absolutely worshipped named Jimmy. Mike wanted to be just like his brother so when he graduated high school he went to the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, earning a BS in Marketing. He also joined a fraternity, Theta Chi, and met the smartest most beautiful woman he'd ever seen and he asked her to marry him. She was from Montgomery, Alabama and her name was Janet Ellis. They got married while they were both still in college. Mike had just turned 21 and Jan was only 19! After graduation, he joined the Air Force and learned to fly jets. In 1970, while they were stationed in Selma, Alabama, Mike and Jan welcomed their first child to the world, a beautiful daughter that they named Missy. Two years later the Air Force moved the family again. This time to Marin, California, where they welcomed their second child, James. They named him James, just like his grandfather, but a pilot friend of Mike’s suggested the nickname "Jake" and it stuck. Shortly after Jake was born, Mike was transferred to Clark Air Base in the Philippines. He flew T-33's and was a flight instructor teaching native Philippine pilots to fly jets, while his wife taught History at the high school located there on the air base. !n 1977 the Air Force transferred Mike back to the states. Mike wanted a change so he stopped flying jets and just like his dad, took advantage of the GI Bill. He got a law degree from the University of Alabama. After graduating, Mike started his second career as a Judge Advocate in the Air Force, this time stationed in Denver, Colorado at Lowry Air Force Base. While he was stationed in Denver, Mike and Jan separated and Mike moved back to Columbus, Mississippi to open a private law practice with some good friends of his held met while in law school. He took on all kinds of cases, anything from bankruptcy to murder. In addition to his private practice, he also served as the public defender for the City of Columbus, while also continuing to work as Judge Advocate in the Air Force Reserves. It was during this time that he met and fell head over heels in love with a school teacher in Columbus named Pam Tilley and he got married again. He spent many happy years with Pam and her daughter, Leigh Anne there in Columbus, a town he loved very much. He was a member of the First Christian Church on McCrary Road and always felt most at home among the congregation. After a successful career as a defense attorney, he retired from his public defender position and from the Air Force Reserves at the rank of Lt. Colonel. Mike and Pam bought a beautiful house on the water and moved to Pensacola, Florida. It was his lifelong dream to live on the water there and he often said that living there with Pam was the happiest he had ever been his entire life. The happy times were not without sadness. Mike lost his daughter Missy to a brain tumor in August of 2015. Three years later, during a routine annual check-up, doctors discovered a small tumor in one of his lungs. Chemo and radiation treatment were somewhat successful but the cancer spread to his lymph nodes and shortly after that, his bones. Michael Ray Farrow passed away on April 22, 202, at 7 pm on the dot, comforted by his adoring wife, Pam, who had been reading the bible to him. Religion was a big part of his life and he always said he felt very close to God. He didn't fear the end and was looking forward to being reunited in the next world with those that had passed before him. He is survived by his wife, Pam; his son, Jake; two grandsons, Jackson and Ellis; his granddaughter, Sarah; his step-daughter, Leigh Ann her husband, Koby Watkins and their two boys Kade and Knox. Michael Farrow was a magnetic, vibrant, funny, smart, caring, loving person, a fantastic father who loved God and will be remembered forever and fondly by those that were lucky enough to call him a friend or a family member.