Darryl Dee McCallum, beloved husband, father, grandfather, friend, and teacher passed away at the age of 78 on September 20, 2024 after a courageous journey with Parkinson’s Disease and Dementia. Born on April 24, 1946 in Big Rapids, Michigan to Harland (Hardy) and Bernice (Ginger) McCallum, Darryl was raised to love nature, Polish food, hunting, fishing and farming. At the age of 15, his father died and he and his siblings carried on with their family dairy farm alongside their mother who taught school full time in Barryton. Darryl’s tremendous work ethic allowed him to manage balancing the demands of farming and pursuing education due to his notable determination and love of learning. He graduated from Barryton Rural Agricultural School in 1964 and continued on to Central Michigan University where he earned both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in education. In 1968, Darryl married his high school sweetheart Carla (Dague) McCallum. The couple purchased land and established their own beef farm while also dedicating their time to their teaching careers. Over the years they delivered hundreds of calves and cared for many other animals who were regarded as pets, including goats, sheep, pigs, horses, rabbits, and turkeys. Despite their busy schedules, Darryl and Carla loved traveling, cherishing countless memories of their trips together that ranged from backpacking in the mountains to hunting trips in Montana and even boating in the Cayman Islands. Darryl was a devoted husband who faithfully purchased Carla one special rose each Valentine’s Day.

Darryl’s family meant everything to him as he was nurturing and protective. He loved his daughter Leigha deeply and shared his favorite things with her, starting with feeding her ice cream when she was just three days old. Together they enjoyed many adventures, including hunting, ice fishing, white water rafting, night hiking, riding ferris wheels, training 4-H animals, and working together in the hayfields. Darryl welcomed his son-in-law Justin into the family and cherished time with him cutting wood and tackling home improvement projects. His most cherished role, however, emerged when he was promoted to Grandpa. From the moment his grandson Miles was born, the two were inseparable and their similarities uncanny. He was blessed with a second grandson Graham three years later, and he went above and beyond to create adventures and spend time with his boys. In summertime, together with Carla, Darryl took the boys fishing and on countless rides on his side by side. Wintertime meant playing “fox and geese” in the snow followed by hot chocolate. He loved to take Miles and Graham out for breakfast, share large boxes of fruit from his favorite farmers’ markets, sample wild apples around the farm, offer pocketfuls of pink wintergreen candies, buy toy tractors, trains, and tools, and he religiously kept their wardrobes well stocked with gloves, orange hats, and rubber boots.

Employed by Evart Public Schools for his entire teaching career, Darryl taught a wide variety of subjects, including industrial arts, small engines, drafting, math, and English. Frequently when seeing former students in the community, they would share that “Mr. McCallum” was highly respected and much loved by his students for his sense of kindness, consistently high expectations, deadpan humor, and entertaining sayings that accompanied his exceptionally large vocabulary. Darryl developed numerous strong friendships with his fellow teachers and community members as they met regularly for coffee at Jerry’s in Evart well into their 70s.

To know Darryl was to catch the twinkle in his eye and the warmth of his smile. Darryl cared deeply for children and children were drawn to him. Throughout his life he displayed an unwavering curiosity about the world as he always asked questions and was interested in getting to know others. He had a presence that commanded respect as he was incredibly driven, decisive, strong, and stubborn yet soft spoken and patient. Whatever the task, from fixing tractors, cutting wood, or home projects Darryl was always there to help solve any problem with his keen mechanical mind. He was honest, practical, straightforward, and full of integrity. Darryl’s hospitality is best described as a “food pusher,” for a visit with him meant that he would insist on grilling the biggest homegrown steak, creating a massive plate of nachos, serving extra helpings of ice cream, or frying unbelievable quantities of his famous breakfast fritters. Darryl loved to laugh and shared his humor often with others whether it was in the form of funny comments or more elaborate practical jokes. In his free time, Darryl was an avid outdoorsman as he loved to hunt and fish, which took him on many wonderful trips with friends and family. On warm summer days you could find him riding his motorcycle.

Remaining to cherish his memory are beloved wife of 56 years, Carla McCallum; daughter, Leigha (Justin) Compson; grandsons, Miles and Graham Compson; sister, Marcia (Mike) Ulrich; first cousin and dear friend, George Corwin; special cousin, Lori (Mark) Wilson; and many dear nieces and nephews. Preceding Darryl in death are mother, Bernice (Palarski) McCallum; father, Harland C. McCallum; brother, Harland L. McCallum; and special uncle, William McCallum.

The family extends much love and gratitude to our friends and family who supported Darryl and family throughout the Parkinson’s and Dementia journey, including cousin George Corwin, sister-in-law Ruth Jackson, and devoted friend Richard "Dick" Coon. We also thank the Big Rapids Fields Assisted Living and Memory Care and the many outstanding caregivers along with the wonderful staff of Heartland Hospice of Fremont, especially registered nurse Logan Merrick. To honor Darryl’s wishes, no memorial service will be held. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a memorial donation to Angels of Action in Big Rapids (www.angelsofaction.org) or planting a tree in his honor.

Memories can be shared online at the Corey Funeral Home, Evart, MI, website: www.coreyfuneralhome.com, where cremation took place.