I had the good fortune of getting to learn from and work with Michael over the past 9 years. My first year in graduate school at Suffolk in 2011 coincided with Michael’s first year on faculty in the department, and so my cohort (who we lovingly refer to as the Cofam) felt an immediate kinship with ‘the New Guy’ and joked that he was a member of the Cofam. It was immediately apparent that he was incredibly kind, brilliant, and humble, and I was grateful to learn from him in class, and to collaborate with him on several projects during my 6 years in graduate school. He made complex statistical models palatable (despite them being far outside my comfort zone), and our meetings were not only consistently productive, but they also always made me feel at ease and cared for. He was a true gem- gracious, compassionate, and deeply caring. Despite that his statistical skills and analyses were far above my head, he patiently tried to explain them to me, and he provided me with the support, encouragement and kindness I needed for the projects and papers I was working on.

After graduating Suffolk and starting my post-doc position at the VA, I was delighted to learn that he was good friends with the PI whose grant I was hired to work on, and that I would get to continue to work closely with Michael as I navigated a new context in a fast-paced research environment. I immediately felt a wave of relief and ease, as only collaborations with Michael could provide. What a pleasure it’s been to get to continue to work with Michael these past 2+ years, particularly since I knew the way to nudge him to respond to emails, I knew that no stats question was too stupid to ask him about, and that I could count on him for a smile and humor in lab meetings and our phone conversations. I also quickly realized that his reputation of brilliance was widespread - we would joke that when he came to the VA for meetings, we had to be quiet about it because so many people were so fond of him and were collaborating with him that he’d never make it to the office we were meeting in, since he had been pulled aside by many eager colleagues and friends while on route.

Michael’s death is a tremendous loss for the field of Psychology and for all of the (many) lives he has touched and impacted. I will always remember Michael for his warmth, humility, and brilliance. For a man with tremendous talent, he moved through teaching, mentorship and collaborations with the graciousness of the guy next-door. I will miss the honor of working with Michael, his boundless kindness and quirky humor, and I know that his memory will be a blessing.