Michael Andre Phoenix

1940 - 2025

Michael Andre Phoenix, loving husband of San Phoenix and prolific educator to innumerable students around the world, passed away on October 3, 2025.

Born on September 23, 1940 in Concord, New Hampshire, Mike was the son of Albert Joseph Phoenix and Frances Gilmore Pearson. He grew up in the New England area, joined the U.S. Navy before attending the University of Massachusetts where he graduated with a B.S. in Psychology. He ran the snack bar in the general store in the late 1960's in Monterey, Massachusetts.

In the early 1960's Mike responded to President Kennedy's call for service and devoted 2 years to work for the Peace Corps in Peru. The experience unleashed his love of adventure. In subsequent years, Mike collected countries he visited like a child collecting apples in a harvest. Insatiably curious, he visited or spent extensive time in more than 140 countries, with his recent trips to Greenland, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and the Azores in Portugal.

Far from being a passive traveler, Mike tried bullfighting in Peru, drove a horse drawn wagon in Ireland, held community dinners while working in Laos, worked as a refugee camp education director in Hong Kong, and lectured on and promoted use of geographic information science (GIS) in China and Bhutan.

Mike's ultimate passion was education. He was most animated when spreading his love of geography, his enthusiasm for the natural environment, and the amazing variety of cultures and people he encountered around the world. He taught at various colleges and universities on the East Coast while completing his PhD in Geography from Clark University. He often described his years working as Esri's liaison to universities around the world were his happiest. He considered GIS to be the best tool for understanding humanity and serving (and saving) the environment. His devotion to learning and exploring earned him the 2008 UCGIS Education Award.

Mike was generous with his love for people around him. He touched many young people's lives by fostering positive energy and life-long learning. By providing free lodging to Esri summer interns at his house, and frequently hosting dinner get togethers, he further encouraged the exchange of knowledge and connections among interns and the larger Esri community. Beyond his immediate environment, Mike also participated in charitable activities such as building for Habitat for Humanity and assisting in wildlife research with Earthwatch.

He is survived by his devoted wife San, sisters Diane Denier and Sandra Harris, 8 nieces and 5 nephews. We will miss him, but promise to continue to travel to favorite and new places in his honor.