More detail on this person: News Obituary Article CLAYTON: Mike Ward, scouted, made news from above By DERRICK HENRY Mike Ward, a pioneer helicopter pilot for WSB radio and 11 Alive television in the 1970s and '80s, helped reporters get to the news. He also saved lives and an Atlanta Braves game. "I flew next to him more than 2,000 hours, and he was always willing to do whatever it took for me to see whatever I needed to see," said Dave Foulk of Seymour, Tenn., a WSB reporter from 1977 to 1992. "Once, he spotted a house in Midtown on fire, and no fire trucks around," Mr. Foulk said. "He circled, decided someone was in the house and landed in the back yard. We ran to the front door, got it open, and kept yelling, 'Where are you?' A couple guys heard our voices and tumbled out just as the fire department rolled up. They were OK, and we went back up in the air." Another time, Mr. Ward rescued a driver whose diesel truck had overturned on the interstate. He saved the day for the Atlanta Braves by drying off a wet field with his helicopter, Mr. Foulk said. For the past decade, Mr. Ward was employed by Helicopter Express of Lawrenceville, specializing in contract fire fighting for the U.S. government. The memorial service for Patrick Michael Ward, 55, of Clayton is 3 p.m. Sunday at River of Life W.C. Congregational Holiness Church in Nicholson. The body was cremated. Betts Funeral Service of Wenatchee, Wash., is in charge of arrangements. Mr. Ward died Aug. 11 when the helicopter he was flying for the U.S. Forest Service crashed while he was delivering supplies to firefighters battling a blaze in Washington state. The accident, believed caused when his back propeller hit a snag, is under investigation, said his daughter Michlynn Ward of Loganville. "If you were a firefighter on the ground, Mike Ward was the man you wanted above your head," said Richie Kittrell of Lawrenceville, general manager of Helicopter Express. "You could count on one hand the helicopter pilots around the country that had the skill sets he had for fire fighting." He learned to fly in 1970 during a tour of duty in Vietnam, where he rescued wounded soldiers. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross twice, said his ex-wife, A.W. "Arty" Smallman of Snellville. "When he was courting, he'd pick me up in his helicopter," Mrs. Smallman said. "It was a pretty neat way to date." Even on slow news days, Mr. Ward kept life in the air interesting, Mr. Foulk said. "One dull morning, he said, 'Let me show you something.' He got in touch with air traffic control, flew up higher than normal around Stone Mountain, and as the sun came up, the clouds made a luminescent crimson carpet with Stone Mountain poking out above it. Mike seemed to enjoy stuff like that." Survivors include his mother, Annie Ruth Ward of Nicholson; another daughter, Annie Elizabeth Ward of Snellville; a son, Patrick Michael Ward II of Snellville; two sisters, Marsha Dukes of Laurens, S.C., and Myra Helton of Nicholson; a brother, Faral Ward of La Vergne, Tenn.; and a granddaughter. c 2004 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024
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