10/31/2026
REMEMBERING A DEAR FRIEND — MIKE HAYES
Last evening, I received some very sad news from Sandra Felderhof. My longtime friend Mike Hayes had passed away.
Mike was quite a character. A talented artist, a lawyer, a highly educated man, and one of the funniest fellows I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing.
When I first met Mike, he was an artist. Later, he put down his paintbrushes and became a lawyer. Eventually, he returned to his first love, painting.
He once told me, “Ivan, all those lawyer jokes are true!”
Mike and I had a wonderful relationship. We teased each other unmercifully, and I always looked forward to his visits to my framing shop.
One day, while discussing one of his paintings, I suggested he needed a little more blue.
“I HATE BLUE!” he declared.
Well, blue happens to be one of my favourite colours!
Mike also had a wonderful sense of humour when it came to naming his paintings. One featured a Clydesdale horse standing in a field.
The title?
“Clyde Is Outstanding in His Field.”
That was Mike!
One of my fondest memories was when he invited me to open his art exhibition in Lunenburg.
He insisted that I wear my yellow sou’wester and tell the story of Peggy of the Cove.
I told him, “Mike, this is YOUR art exhibition. It’s supposed to be about YOU!”
But he insisted.
Finally, I agreed, on one condition: he had to wear his cowboy hat.
And that’s exactly what we did!
I began telling the story of Peggy, and as I was getting ready to finish, Mike suddenly shouted from the audience:
“HEY! WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO TALK ABOUT ME?”
The whole room erupted in laughter.
That was Mike Hayes.
After the exhibition, he took me to The Knot Pub in Lunenburg, telling me it was where the locals went for good food.
Over the years, we shared countless laughs, stories, and good-natured arguments.
Even the last time he visited, when he told me his cancer had returned, he was still his usual jolly self. We ended up laughing about hearing aids, of all things.
That’s how I want to remember him.
Not simply as an accomplished artist or an intelligent man with several degrees, but as a dear friend who could brighten a room with his humour.
Mike left behind some beautiful paintings, but he also left something that can’t be hung on a wall.
Wonderful memories in the hearts of those who knew and loved him.
To Sandra and the family, April and I extend our heartfelt condolences.
It was a genuine friendship, with laughter, and all those unforgettable moments.
Mike will be missed!.
Ivan Fraser
