Michael Willard Van Dyke, 66 years of age, of Upton, Wyoming, passed away on August 29, 2024, after unexpected health complications.

Michael was born on November 27, 1957, to Merline and Gloria Van Dyke in Fargo, North Dakota. When Michael was 11, he moved with his family to Lakewood, Colorado, where he grew up and resided for the majority of his life. He attended Bear Creek High School where he was a State Champion wrestler and an Eagle Scout. After graduating, he began his working career in the construction industry, working on residential and large-scale commercial projects. He later transitioned to land surveying and engineering for the family company, Van Dyke Engineering & Surveying, Inc. Towards the end of his professional career, Michael formed Thunderclouds, LLC where he provided design, CAD, and surveying services. After retiring, Michael moved from Colorado to the small town of Upton, Wyoming where he purchased a small acreage complete with a shop and a lift for all his hobby and project vehicles.

He had three children: Shayanna Waters, Skyler Van Dyke and Aubrey Van Dyke. His hobbies included Harley Davidson motorcycles, muscle cars (especially Corvettes and old GM muscle), old trucks, coin collecting, classic rock music and always keeping more than a few open projects. During his younger years, he was an avid outdoor enthusiast and spent many weekends camping with his kids and hunting elk in the southern mountains of Colorado. Everywhere he went he was accompanied by his best friend, Taz, who was a rescue puppy and a loyal companion for 14 years. He immensely enjoyed spending time with his friends and family. He would road trip on a regular basis to visit them and spend multiple hours a week on the phone chatting about life with his loved ones. He was always mechanically inclined. He could figure out the inside workings of everything he touched to rebuild it and have it running the way it should. He was the family go to for anything that ever needed fixed. He was a gearhead at heart and would often be heard saying, “Drive it like you stole it, and use all the road!”. He loved taking annual trips to Daytona Bike Week and burning gas in anything that had an engine.

Michael is preceded in death by an older brother, Jesse Van Dyke and a younger brother Timothy Van Dyke. He is survived by his parents, Merline and Gloria Van Dyke, younger brother Greg Van Dyke and his children Shayanna, Skyler and Aubrey. He is also survived by countless cousins and relatives.

Viewing services will be held at Fulkerson-Stevenson Funeral Home in Watford City, ND on September 13th, 2024, at 4PM CST. The funeral will be held September 14, 2024, at 10:00 AM CST where he will be buried at the Good Hope Cemetery north of Keene, ND. A precession will be leaving Fulkerson funeral home in Watford city at approximately 9:30 AM CST In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in his honor to your local animal shelters or the World Wildlife Organization. Mike loved animals and was a regular donor of The Foothills Animal Shelter in Lakewood, CO, where he adopted his beloved dog, Taz.

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