I met Mike when I moved back to River City after completing medical training. He sold medical equipment–everything one needed to set up practice. A quintessential salesman, loquacious and voluble to a fault, he always had a story to tell. Very soon we discovered our mutual love for quail hunting, and that fast became the core of most of our conversations. By season’s end, we were constant bird-hunting companions.

That is why it came as such a surprise the week before opening day when Mike announced he invited his preacher to go with us.