Mike Hamm moved here from Austin, Texas, two years ago. He worked at Lancelotti Housewares and Alphabets on Avenue A.
"He loved the East Village — it inspired him," Cara Brininstool told me via email. Mike, like many others, had the dream of moving to New York City and exploring what life had to offer, she said.
The two of them moved here together. She said that they were best friends.
Mike died on Jan. 7. He was 29.
Cara said that he had an undiagnosed condition called arteriovenous malformation that caused a series of brain hemorrhages. He remained in a coma through another hemorrhage and a stroke. Cara said that Mike's family and friends never left his side during the 11-day hospital stay.
"We actually got complaints that we were causing a fire hazard because there were so many friends who had gathered in the waiting room," Cara said.
"Mike was the kind of person who got excited when the music playing in his headphones synced up with the bustle of the city around him," she said. "Turning a corner or breaching the city's surface from the subway at the climax of the song — things like this thrilled him and made him giddy."
Next Friday, Mike's friends and family are gathering at Heathers on East 13th Street to celebrate his life.
As previously noted, the Centre-fuge Public Art Project is dedicated in his memory.
