We were very sad to learn of the passing of Mickey Deison, one of the founding members of the Conroe Noon Kiwanis Club. Mickey was well known in our community for his countless years of service. We will miss his laughter and many stories at our weekly lunch meetings.
In 1954 Mickey joined the Conroe Kiwanis Club and helped build the Kiwanis Shelter, known today as Yes to Youth Montgomery County Youth Services. He is the only person to be elected to County Judge and Chairman of the Conroe/Lake Conroe Chamber of Commerce. He also co-founded Montgomery County Emergency Services, known today as Community Assistance Center.
Mickey never missed a weekly meeting until COVID hit and closures prevented meetings to take place.
Some of the members reflected on their relationship with Mickey:
Daniel Pruett has been a Conroe Noon Kiwanis member for 34 years and knew Mickey as a Pillar of the Kiwanis Club. “His membership endured over 60 years making him the longest member over time in our club. He was always wanting to work on projects that would benefit the children of Montgomery County. His charitable contributions to our community and this club is countless. Mickey had a servant’s heart and I know he fulfilled his mission on earth but leaving it better a better place. The biggest thing about Mickey is that he loved us.”
Penny Wilson is the Chief Operating Officer for Yes to Youth, Montgomery County Youth Services and one of the newer members of the Club. She joined Conroe Noon Kiwanis in 2019 but knew Mickey from his frequent donations to Youth Services.
“The first time I met Mickey was when I first started working for YES to YOUTH. I was brand new to the organization. One day I got a call from our receptionist that the County Judge was here to drop off a donation. He was carrying bags of towels and bedsheets to donate to a family we were serving who had lost everything in a house fire. He introduced himself and explained that he was the past County Judge back when Montgomery County Youth Services was founded. He came back the next week with pots, pans, and other household goods. When he returned, he had a check from the Kiwanis Club to cover anything else the family needed and to be able to include toys and clothes for the kids.”
“Every Holiday season Mickey always recommended a donation to ensure that families in need would be blessed for Christmas. He would hand-deliver a check from the Kiwanis Club to our Conroe office every year. I always looked forward to his visits because I knew we would have a great conversation.”
He invited our CFO and me to his office last year to learn more about the origins of Montgomery County Youth Services. He spent over an hour telling us about how the youth shelter we now run was built by the Kiwanis Club and was run by their volunteers until they turned it over to Bucker Family Services who later turned it over to us. He went on to explain that when he was County Judge he knew that it was unacceptable for the youth in our community to not have anyone advocating for them, so he called for a special committee to come together to make a recommendation for a solution. Out of that committee came Montgomery County Youth Services and we are still around 41 years later. And Mickey has been with us every step of the way.”
“Mickey was not one to start something that he was not going to personally support. And he would always recruit others to help. He had a strong sense of responsibility to the community and made sure to remind every County Judge that came after him how important social services were to the health of the community. I am honored to have known Mickey.”
President of the Conroe Noon Kiwanis Club, Javier Pena, had a few ending thoughts. “Mickey has been instrumental in consistently driving the club forward and keeping the club focused on our mission of helping youth in Montgomery County. I know everyone in the club will miss him greatly and our thoughts and prayers are with his friends and family. Mickey touched many lives over the years, he will forever be an inspiration to me and many others.”
If you want to be a part of the club started by legendary Mickey Deison please attend our meeting Wednesday. We meet at Hacienda Mis Padres (5104 W. Davis, Conroe)
The Conroe Noon Kiwanis Club has been serving children in the community since 1952. The members are dedicated to helping kids locally around the Greater Conroe area. Learn more at www.ConroeKiwanis.com or on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ConroeNoonKiwanis.