Just before sunrise on Sunday, February 23, 2025, a noble heart stopped beating, and the world lost one of its great men.
Michael Fenn Mackedon was born August 4, 1941, in Fallon, Nevada, to Leonard and Julia Mackedon. His lifelong interests were developed early. He loved the Nevada desert, especially the land around Dixie Valley and the Greenhead Hunting Club, or wherever there were fish to catch, ducks to hunt, or chukar to scout. He loved learning and was a serious citizen of the world of ideas. When he was in grade school, his friends and family predicted that he would study law and become a fine lawyer. He graduated from Churchill County High School in 1959, after serving as student body president, and from the University of Nevada in 1963, where he again served as his school’s student body president. He journeyed on to receive his law degree at Georgetown Law School in 1967 with his new bride, Michon (Maupin), at his side. The two of them then returned to Fallon, where, as he put it, he “hung up his shingle.”
For Mike, practicing law was not a means to a financial end, but rather a calling. He always said that he had chosen the profession of law to “help the widow and the orphan,” and he did. He practiced law in Fallon for fifty-seven years, serving since 1993 as Fallon’s City Attorney. He left a legacy of gentlemanly actions, scholarly legal work, and kind and genuine concern for others.
Along the way, he had a lot of fun. He was a member of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. That speaks for itself. He and Michon traveled the highways and byways of Nevada, camping at Smith Creek with their children in the earlier years, stopping at country bars to “Waltz Across Texas,” and visiting Nevada friends in the north, south, east, and west. Later, they were fortunate enough to vacation in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Montreal, Europe, and always, San Francisco. They made two trips to The Republic of Georgia, where their son was serving in the Peace Corps, and made life-long friends there.
Above all, Mike loved being at his dining room table, reading everything from cookbooks to philosophy, or stepping outside to tend his famous vegetable garden. His mind was clear and active to the end; the day before he died, he finished a crossword puzzle, streamed a Great Course episode on capitalism, and talked to his law partners about a case.
Mike was pre-deceased by his parents and his son and law partner, Leonard Ernest Mackedon. He is survived by his wife of fifty-eight years, Michon, his two sons, Gib Mackedon (Melissa) and John Mackedon (Meg), his daughter, Amy O’Flaherty (Patrick), and his six cherished grandchildren: Maggie, Ellie and Sadie O’Flaherty, Fenn and Hazel Mackedon, and Anastasia Mackedon. He also leaves behind his sisters, Michelle Dondero and Lenn Furrow, his brother, James Mackedon, as well as a host of extended family members.
The family would like to thank Mikel, Chelsea, and Peyton of Infinity Hospice for their kind and capable care and Dr. Amanda Casey for being an extraordinary doctor and friend.
A Celebration Service will be held on Saturday, March 1, at 11 a.m. at the Oats Park Art Center, 151 East Park Street, Fallon, Nevada. Donations in Mike’s name can be made to the Fallon Youth Club, 324 Pennington Cr., Fallon, NV 89406, or the Churchill Arts Council, 151 East Park Street, Fallon, NV 89406.
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