Mike R. Patterson, age 68, died suddenly on July 4, 2025. Mike was born June 20, 1957, to Bob and Ruth (Ridinger) Patterson. He grew up in Chariton, Iowa, where he was better known as “Opie”. He played Little League baseball for the Bears, went swimming at the Chariton pool every day in the summer, and enjoyed hunting with his dad. Mike graduated from Chariton High School in 1976. 

After graduation, he spent several years living in Anchorage, Alaska, where he worked at the sprout factory. He moved back to Chariton and was involved in an accident where he was hit by a train while walking with headphones on and an Alaskan parka that blocked his view. After a long recovery, he began working at Mid-Central Plastics in Des Moines. 

In 1989, he started a relationship with Delrae Vander Linden and became a parent to her two children, Logan and Harmony. In 1997, Mike started working at Hy-Vee as a Grocery Warehouse Worker, where he worked for the rest of his life. He made some of his best friends there. 

Mike was an avid hunter, fisherman, and outdoorsman. Along with his hunting dogs, Jake and Bo, he brought home many meals for his family. When he wasn’t hunting or fishing, you could find him on the golf course. He played many years in Chariton, and later in Humeston. Mike loved to spend time with friends and family, and he had a soft spot for his grandkids, who he loved to visit. 

Mike was preceded in death by his parents, Bob and Ruth Patterson, his sister, Karen Sue Patterson, and his spouse, Delrae Vander Linden. Left to remember him are his children, Harmony (Rebecca) Linden, and Logan (Tamara) Vander Linden; his grandchildren Nadirah, Diyari, Zaid, Cyrus, and Ruby; his siblings Bob (Jean) Patterson, Cheryl Graan, Steve Patterson, and Patty Dougan; and many nieces and nephews. 

Services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Friday, July 11, 2025, at Fielding Funeral Home in Chariton, Iowa. Visitation will be held 5:00-7:00 p.m. Thursday, July 10, 2025, at the Fielding Funeral Home. Interment will be at the Chariton Cemetery following the services.