Michael David Dunn

Services are 2pm Thursday, October 28, at Hillside Christian Church (6100 Soncy). Visitation is scheduled for 5-8pm on Wednesday, October 27, at Griggs-Schooler-Gordon Funeral Directors, 5400 Bell.

Sgt. Dunn was born February 6, 1970, in Hutchinson, Kansas, to Gary Dunn and Barbara Holt Dunn. He would spend the next 51 years living according to the three pillars of his life: God, Family and Country. Mike was many things to many people, and all of them were good things. He was a husband, father and son. He was a friend and confidant. He was a veteran and a hero, a warrior and a man among men. Mike was both a Marine and a Police Officer.

At the same time, he was a servant who never hesitated to give of himself. He was an instructor who never hesitated to pass along his experience and wisdom. He was a home chef who never hesitated to throw something delicious on the grill.

Mike grew up in Amarillo and graduated from Amarillo High School in 1988. He excelled on the Sandies varsity wrestling team, becoming the Division 6 AAU National Wrestling Champion in 1987 and the Division 6 Texas State Wrestling Champion in 1988. It was during those years that he met his high school sweetheart, Delonda Baker.

Feeling the call to serve his country, Mike enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in February 1988. Mike and Delonda got engaged in December 1988. A few weeks later, Mike left for boot camp. After a six-month deployment in Okinawa, Mike returned home briefly to marry Delonda at Paramount Baptist Church in Amarillo on July 28, 1990.

Three weeks after the wedding, Mike deployed again. With the Regimental Combat Team 7a Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Mike served in Operation Desert Shield in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq starting in August of 1990. Eventually that turned into Operation Desert Storm—otherwise known as the Gulf War. He served in that capacity as an assaultman and forward observer into 1991.

The next year, from November 1992 to May 1993, Mike again deployed, this time to Somalia in Operation Restore Hope. There he specialized in counterintelligence and clandestine operations. He planned and led hostage rescues.

Mike was honorably discharged as a Sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps in December 1994, after having won a number of service awards and letters of recognition, along with recommendation for officer candidacy. However, he chose to return to Texas—and Delonda—to serve in another capacity. Mike enrolled in criminal justice administration classes at Central Texas College before starting a law enforcement career with the Amarillo Police Department. He later continued his criminal justice education at Amarillo College.

With APD, Mike became a patrol officer in 1995, working the 3rd Shift North. In the process, he trained in firearms, narcotics, basic SWAT, interview and interrogation, and qualified as a firearms instructor. He left the police force in 1999 to pursue business opportunities, only to realize that public service was in his blood. It wasn’t something he could set aside. He rejoined the force in 2004 and never looked back.

By 2008 he had become APD’s lead in-service firearms instructor, responsible for the development and direction of APD firearms training. He also served as the lead instructor in Arrest, Search and Seizure at the APD Academy. In 2013, APD promoted Mike to the Detective Division of the Robbery Squad, where he investigated 866 robbery and/or assault cases through late 2015. He was then assigned to the Special Crimes Unit, where he served as homicide investigator.

In that role, Mike Dunn closed cases. Period. Across 116 homicide investigations—including 78 as the lead investigator—Sgt. Mike Dunn had a 100-percent clearance rate. Two of those included capital murder/death penalty indictments. By the time of his death, Mike had accumulated letters of appreciation from countless prosecuting attorneys, outside agencies and citizens for his work. From the Amarillo Police Department, he earned the Certificate of Merit in 2006 and 2018, the Life-Saving Award in 2007, Operations Citations in 2011 and 2013, and the Amarillo South Rotary Police Officer of the 4th Quarter of 2020. Mike also received the Good Conduct Award in 2017.

The phrase “Good Conduct” covers a lot of territory. Mike Dunn’s list of military and police accommodations is long, but it’s matched by his list of community leadership positions. He spent 14 seasons as a soccer coach for Kids Inc and the Amarillo Soccer Association. And if the thought of a burly Marine and police detective cheering for the Pink Storms makes you smile, then you should know Mike filled his life with those kinds of smiles. For 11 years, he also served as a den leader and Cubmaster for the Pack 7 Cub Scouts, and Assistant Scoutmaster, Merit Badge Counselor and High Adventure Leader with Troop 10 of the Boy Scouts of America.

Mike and Delonda were faithful members of Hillside Christian Church, where Mike continued to serve others on his days off, providing security on a regular basis as he protected and worshipped alongside pastors, elders, staff and the congregation.

Mike Dunn was devoted to his country and served it as a Marine. He was devoted to his city and served Amarillo as a police officer and detective. He was devoted to his community and served kids as a coach and Scoutmaster. He was devoted to his church and served Hillside as a protector. Mike was a devoted friend and colleague to so many.

But his most important service, of course, was to his family. Raising two girls and two boys requires a different kind of heroism. Sgt. Mike Dunn is survived by his bride of 31 years and high school sweetheart, Delonda Baker Dunn, and his children Chloe, Michael, Reagan and Bailey, all of Amarillo. He is also survived by his mother Barbara Holt Dunn; his aunt Margaret “Peggy” Holt; his brother Marc Dunn, sister-in-law Anita and nephews Christopher and Preston; his in-laws Duane and Nancy Baker; his brother- and sister-in-law Bryson and Deanna Oeschger and nieces Bryce and Brynn Oeschger, along with a vast extended family. Mike was preceded in death by his father, Gary J. Dunn.

Those who knew Mike best called him “The Sarge.” In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to “The Sarge Scholarship,” otherwise known as the Sgt. Mike Dunn Memorial Scholarship. Checks should be made payable to the WTAMU Foundation with The Sgt. Mike Dunn Memorial Scholarship in the subject line (WTAMU Foundation, Box 60766, Canyon, TX 79016).

Friends, family and fellow officers can also honor Mike by emulating the way he lived—as a servant. Serve your country. Serve your city. Serve your community. Serve your church. Get the bad guys. Coach the sports teams. Work with the Scouts. Cook for your friends. Marry your high school sweetheart. Be the best dad. Be a good neighbor. Do the right thing. Do the good thing. That’s how The Sarge did it. Be like The Sarge.