Daniel Joseph Colella

Daniel Colella was a loving father, doting grandfather and good friend. He lived a life that was both adventurous and rooted, outgoing and contented, fun loving and considerate. 1942 was a time of war for our country, but in spite of the rationing and tough times, the films and music of that year gave people the opportunity to express their affection for each other. This included one of the most romantic films, Casablanca, which premiered at the Hollywood Theater in New York City. For Emil Colella and his wife, Mary (Klimo), of Muskegon, Michigan, a new love came into their lives in this year. On October 13, 1942, the couple delighted in welcoming the birth of their son, Daniel Joseph, who was their only child. Emil's family was immigrants from Romano, Italy, and they had settled in the Chicago area. With many cousins in the Grand Haven, Michigan area, Emil and Mary moved to Muskegon, and made their home in Ruddiman Terrace, where they would eventually raise their son Daniel (or Dan as he was called). Both Emil and Mary worked outside the home; Emil at Continental Motors and Mary as a cook at the Pontaluna Golf Club. Dan enjoyed a happy childhood and being a typical boy, he got into his fair share of mischief growing up. He often told the story of how he put BBs in his pant cuffs, which somehow fell out during church and rolled under the pews. Needless to say, the nuns were not happy with him. Dan did put his abundant energy to good use too, playing football and golf, which he learned from his father. Dan was a pretty darn good golfer and had won a Junior Golf Tournament in Muskegon, not to mention the several Father-Son Tournaments he and his Dad won at Pontaluna Golf Club. Dan attended Bunker Elementary School and graduated from Muskegon Catholic Central High School. After graduating, he went to work at Brickner & Krupp, where he learned the trade of a tool and die maker. Some time thereafter, Dan met Jeannie Holmstrom, who was from the Upper Peninsula but was living in Muskegon, attending Muskegon Business College. They were soon married and had two children, Kathy and Steve. Unfortunately, their marriage ended in divorce, and Jeannie moved with the kids to Grand Rapids. Dan found love again with Marcia Erickson, who worked with him, but they were also friends from their high school days. Dan and Marcia were married and had two daughters together, Dana and Christine. Marcia also had two children of her own, Rhonda and Scott, and Dan welcomed them wholeheartedly into their family. Dan, Marcia and the children, including Kathy and Steve when they visited on the weekends, lived on Summit Street in Roosevelt Park. By this time, Dan was working at Muskegon Piston Ring. The family especially enjoyed summer vacations together. Unfortunately after eleven years Dan's marriage to Marcia ended and he moved to a house on Muskegon River. His daughters, Dana and Chris, remember many great weekends with their dad, canoeing, tubing and fishing on the River together. Aside from his children, Dan was very close to his parents, and he was truly devastated when his mother died after a hard battle with cancer followed by his father a few years later. One year, Dan endured two setbacks when the Muskegon River flooded his house and Muskegon Piston Ring, his place of work, ended up shutting down. Ready to make a new start, Dan decided to move to Australia, where he moved around quite a bit, living in Perth, Brisbane and Sydney. He worked a variety of jobs while there, including at a resort and as a taxi driver. Eventually, Dan grew terribly homesick for his children and moved back to Muskegon for a while. After some time, however, he returned to Australia, only to return home again later when he missed his children. This happened several times until Dan returned to Muskegon for good in the early 1990s. In his leisure time, Dan enjoyed pursuing several of his favorite hobbies. He continued to love golfing, particularly at Elks Golf Course, where he scored a hole in one on the exact same hole on the exact same date only a year a part. A real outdoorsman, Dan liked both deer and bear hunting and most recently fishing with his friend, Lee. He especially looked forward to the day when he could take his grandchildren hunting and fishing too. Dan was a huge fan of the University of Michigan football. And also enjoyed of playing bingo with his cousin, Georgia. In his quieter moments, Dan enjoyed tending to his houseplants and watching mystery shows on TV or listening to the Ham Radio. His greatest joy though was being a doting grandfather to his grandchildren. He would cheer them on at their baseball and soccer games, or just enjoyed their time together. About two years ago, Dan's liver began to fail and he was put on a transplant list, while being treated at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. His daughters Dana and Christine knew the way to the hospital by heart since they made so many visits. Dan eventually went to the Poppen Hospice House, where he died peacefully. He will be deeply missed. Daniel Joseph Colella, age 64, died Sunday, November 19, 2006. He is survived by his 4 children: Christine Wierengo, Dana (Jim) Mikesell, both of Muskegon, Steve Colella, Kathy Vaughn, both of Grand Rapids; 9 grandchildren: Andi and Cooper Wierengo, Justin, Anthony, Sarah and Jami Mikesell, Josh Colella, Nick and Stevi Vaughn; several special cousins in Grand Haven. A funeral service will be held on Wednesday, November 22, at 2:00 p.m. at Clock Chapel. Friends may visit with Daniel's family on Wednesday, one hour prior to the service at Clock Life Story Funeral Home. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude's Children's Hospital or Poppen Hospice House. Please visit www.lifestorynet.com to leave a memory or sign the online guestbook.