Michael John Jacobus

Michael John "N4DIA" Jacobus (1955–2025)

Husband, Father, Falconer, Fixer, Dog Whisperer, Radio Man, and Musician

After a 9-month battle with brain cancer (because of course it would be the brain-he always did like a challenge), Mike Jacobus passed away on 9/7/2025, having squeezed 70 full years out of this strange and beautiful world.

Born in New Brunswick, NJ, raised in Fort Pierce, FL, Mike eventually made his nest in Pensacola, where he lived, loved, built questionable backyard contraptions, and made lifelong friends.

Mike was a man of many talents and absolutely no interest in doing things the conventional way. He was a brilliant self-taught musician, equally at home on piano, guitar, or singing songs that somehow always turned into group singalongs. Mike never met a guitar he couldn't strum, a piano he couldn't play, or a piece of electronics he couldn't take apart and fix. He believed life was one big jam session: a little improvised, occasionally off-key, but always worth playing loud.

He could fix anything-cars, radios, or just about anything you can think of-and had a particular love for Ham radio, where he enjoyed talking to friends and strangers across the globe about things most people in his house had long since stopped pretending to understand.

Mike showed his love through small acts-fixing your brakes, teaching you guitar, helping build a radio tower in your yard, or just checking in on you. He didn't always say the right thing, but he was always there-and in the end, that counted the most.

But Mike's talents didn't stop at music and mechanical wizardry. No, he also had a deep love for animals-especially the majestic, the strange, and the outright unmanageable. He raised and cared for countless birds of prey-hawks, falcons, and owls-most of whom were better behaved than he was. His falconry pursuits were equal parts graceful and chaotic, and rumor has it once a neighbor found themselves bun-to-beak with one of Mike's escape artist winged companions.

And then there were the Great Danes: enormous, slobbery companions who answered to names like Nosebag, Ruby, Wilbur, and Lucy. These gentle giants and their other dog and cat pals lived like royalty in the Jacobus home. He even somehow ended up with a colony of guinea pigs-because of course he did.

Mike wasn't perfect-he wouldn't want us pretending otherwise-but he was deeply kind, infuriatingly funny, and endlessly curious. He believed that anything worth doing was worth doing with gusto, and probably involved duct tape, glue or spray paint.

He leaves behind his loving wife of 26 years, Starr, who deserves sainthood for putting up with the many, many animals, projects, and loud musical performances. His daughter and step children, Michael Brianne, Jenny, Jessie, and Gabe, who will miss his expert advice and caring nature. Bonus (grand) daughter Olivia who inherited both his love for birds and his complete inability to throw anything away. He also leaves behind an awesome crew of seven other grandchildren who loved him dearly and a tribe of friends, fellow falconers, Ham radio enthusiasts, musicians, and tinkerers who will feel his absence hoping Mike's ghost might radio in with tech support.

Friends and family are invited to stop by and celebrate Mike's life together on September 27th from 2-4pm at the Jacobus home. Please bring stories, music, and wear your favorite Hawaiian, Ham or band shirt in Mike's honor. Mike has finally taken flight-probably with one of his hawks. May he soar high, sing loud, and never have to fix a leaking dishwasher again.

Fly free, Mike. We'll see you on the next frequency