Mike Richardson

MIKE RICHARDSONP. Michael "Mike" Richardson, 50, practicing Columbia attorney and resident of Griffith Road in Nashville, died Saturday, September 21, 2002 from injuries sustained in an accident on Interstate 40 near Crossville while enroute to the University of Tennessee football game in Knoxville. A memorial service will be conducted Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at Oakes & Nichols with Rev. Billy Roy Moore officiating. The family will visit with friends Tuesday from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the funeral home. A private family graveside will be conducted at Polk Memorial Gardens. Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association. The Columbia native was the son of the late Joseph W. Richardson and Margaret Elise Biffle Richardson. He was a 1969 graduate of Columbia Central High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree with highest honors from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.At the University of Tennessee, he was the recipient of the UT Alumni Scholarship, the Kline Memorial Fellowship for German Studies, the Ruth Sevens Fellowship for the study of International Relations, and the ROTC Scholarship Achievement Award for the cadet with the highest academic average for the years 1971-1972 and 1972-1973. He also received the Distinguished Military Graduate Award.From 1973-1977, he served in the United States Army as a missile platoon leader wit the 74th Field Artillery Detachment, Special Ammunitions Support Command (SASCOM) which was attached to the First German Missile Squadron in Landsberg, Germany. His detachment was responsible for the custody, control and potential launch of U. S. Special Weapons. While a member of the 74th Field Artillery Detachment, he was granted a Top Secret Crypto clearance and qualified under the United States Emergency Authentication System with the top grade recorded on the test at that time by SASCOM. He also served as a German translator and liaison with the First German Missle Squadron and as a member of the Augsburg Special Court-Martial Panel.In 1977, he obtained a Masters of Business Administration degree from the University of Utah. In 1980, he received his Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Vanderbilt University. While at Vanderbilt, he earned the American Jurisprudence Award in both Bankruptcy and Property Law. Mr. Richardson practiced law in Nashville with the firm of Trabue, Sturdivant & DeWitt before returning to Columbia and co-established the firm of Richardson & Golden. His practice includes corporate and commercial law, creditor's rights, financial workouts and civil litigation. Mr. Richardson is a member of the Nashville Committee on Foreign Relations, the Tennessee Bar Association, Nashville Bar Association and Maury County Bar Association. He is also a member of the Columbia Kiwanis Club, served as the club's co-chair of the Young Children Priority One Committee, and Herbert Griffin American Legion Post #19. He was honored by the Columbia Rotary Club as a Paul Harris Fellow. He was an avid fan of the University of Tennessee football program. He was a member of the Bellevue Grace Assembly of God. Survivors include his wife, Karen Lynn Smith Richardson of Nashville; a daughter, Katherine Elise "Kate" Richardson of Nashville; a son, Joseph Michael "Joe" Richardson of Nashville; a sister, Mrs. Billy Allen (Terry Jo) Hood of Columbia; a brother, Steven Clay (Kathy) Richardson of Murfreesboro.