Born to a father in the Air Force and a mother who worked as a registered nurse, Mike and his three brothers had a “normal” childhood; it was “probably better than most childhoods,” he says. But his genius was apparent young, and he started school when he was just four years old. After graduation, following in his father’s footsteps, Mike joined the Marines and served from 1976 through 1979.
“Be the change you want to see.”

Mike first came to Salt Lake City in the early 80’s to attend hairdressing school. A passionate inventor, Mike developed a new way to do nails, and a new way to dry hair, with towel-like gloves, cutting drying time in half. He’s also invented sprinklers that deliver water in treetops where it can have an effect on ambient temperatures. He first became homeless two weeks after losing his job at a stucco company, and he’s lived on the streets for the last 12 years.

“I just need a garage,” he replies when asked what it would take to get off the streets. “If it could be a woodworking shop, that would be great.” He wishes to be an artist that makes things simpler and easier to do. A talented cosmetologist, he’d love to start doing “Makeovers for the Homeless.” He yearns for the space to make his creations and build a business selling them, including handmade ‘Time Out’ glasses for kids, and the million other things he dreams up before breakfast.
“Homeless people are really more friendly. It doesn’t seem like it, but they are so friendly. You walk by someone who is not homeless and say Hi, and they don’t say anything. They walk by you like you don’t exist. When you walk by someone who’s homeless and say ‘Hey, how are you?’ ‘What’s up?’, you know? There is a commonality.”