Michael Parent

A Long time Moran resident has rounded the last bend of the river: Mike Parent passed away suddenly in Jackson, WY, on July 16, 2025, only a month after his 80th birthday. He was born in Bronxville, New York, on June 5, 1945, to Beverly and Claude Parent. The family was pretty mobile so he got the opportunity to live in several states as he grew up. When the family finally settled down, it was in the state of California. There he finished high school and went to college at Fresno State University earning a B.A. in English. He began his love for the Tetons and the surrounding area when he was twelve years old on a vacation with his family. It was between his graduation from high school and the start of college that he got his first summer job with Grand Teton Lodge Company. He became a river guide on the Snake River and floated for many fun filled seasons. Mike loved floating and working with the many close friends he made doing so, many of whom have remained life long friends. Back in college, he talked his girlfriend, Jan, into getting a summer job with the Lodge Company. She, too, fell in love with the area (and him) and worked several seasons for the lodge. They were married in June of 1969 and recently celebrated their 56th wedding anniversary.

Mike’s passion for education took him to Michigan State University where he earned an MBA, and then on to the University of Oregon for his PhD. He had a passion for teaching and wanted to teach at a university near the Tetons. Fortunately, Utah State University hired him to teach marketing, and he and Jan moved to Logan, UT, in 1972. There he became a full professor and taught for 42 years. He was very involved with the university and held many different positions. Among them are: teaching MBA courses in global marketing strategy and applied research methods; serving as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies; Athletic Director; and President of the Faculty Senate. He was also elected President of the Big West Conference and served on the NCAA’s Competition and Championships Cabinet. He was appointed to the NCAA Bowl Committee and served as chair. With the Decision Sciences Institute he held elected leadership positions and served on the executive committee of its board of directors. After his retirement, he was honored with an Emeritus Professorship in the university’s Huntsman School of Business.

Mike and Jan have spent every summer of their married lives in Moran. They lived 10 summers in a trailer at the Box K Ranch. In 1972 they found a parcel of land close by and were able to purchase it. They designed their log cabin and had the logs milled just down the Buffalo Valley Road. Mike built most of the cabin himself while Jan provided encouragement, sandwiches, and lemonade. It was a magical place to live and raise a family. The kids grew up exploring, hiking, fishing, and enjoying wildlife. After Mike retired in 2013, he and Jan moved to the cabin permanently.

Mike had many interests and passions. Fishing is one of them. He was an excellent fly fisherman and liked to tie his own flies. His footprints can be found on the banks of many of the rivers, streams and lakes in the area. He really enjoyed volunteering with the Fish and Game Department when they did fish surveys. He was an excellent golfer and designed and made golf clubs. One of his great passions was wine making. Every year for nearly twenty years he has bottled his private cabernet sauvignon from grapes grown at a family friend’s vineyard in the Alexander Valley in California. He proudly donated a lot of his wine to charitable organizations to help them raise money to support their causes. He passed away a few days before this year’s family bottling event where family from all across the country gather and help bottle his wine. The family is going ahead with the event and making it a celebration of his life and the last vintage of Chateau Michel Parent. Mike is survived by his wife, Jan; his two children, a daughter, Robin, son-in-law, Micah, and a son, Ian; grandchildren, Morgan, Connor, and James; his sisters, Mauray and Grace, and his brother, Beau. We are better for being able to share his life and hold his memory dear in our hearts.