Don McCall, 92, of Skaneateles, died peacefully with family by his side on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023, following a brief illness. Born in Syracuse to Ed and Loretta McCall, Don graduated from St. Anthony’s High School on the South Side in 1949, where he played basketball and football in the famous Syracuse Parochial League. He was a member of the third graduating class at Le Moyne College in 1953, where he received his bachelor’s degree in economics.
After graduating from LeMoyne, Don served as a waterworks engineer in the U.S. Army in France, where he was a member of the first integrated squadron in the Army and successfully defended the French populous from foreign invasion and non-potable water sources during the Korean War. Don spent his entire career in the finance industry, working his way up from chasing down delinquent payments and repossessing cars for GMAC—where he once had to collect a past-due payment from former Syracuse University football great Jimmy Brown. He retired as vice president of leasing with Chase Manhattan Bank after 25 years of service.
Always active in community service, Don was a communicant of St. Mary’s of the Lake Catholic Church and a member of the Skaneateles Rotary Club and American Legion Post 239—as well as a long-time volunteer for the Francis House, FISH, Laker Limo, and Meals on Wheels, among others. An avid—although admittedly not particularly skilled—golfer and skier, Don continued to enjoy those pursuits for most of his life, skiing in the Italian Dolomites at 83 and playing the championship courses at PGA West at 88.
In addition to his parents, Ed and Loretta, and younger brother, Jim McCall of St. Augustine, FL, Don was predeceased by the love of his life, his wife Anne P. McCall. He is survived by his three children Tim (Cindy) McCall of Cazenovia, Tom (Vicki) McCall of Bonita Springs, FL, and Sue (Michael) Boughton of Pensacola, FL, three stepchildren Debbie McInerney of Bloomfield, CT, Tara Gwynn of West Hartford, CT, and Brooke Mayger of Ft. Lauderdale FL, 16 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
Services will be 10 a.m. Wednesday, October 18, at St. Mary’s of the Lake Catholic Church in Skaneateles, after which Don will be buried next to Anne in Lake View Cemetery.
A celebration of life reception will follow at the Sherwood Inn. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Don’s name to The Francis House, 108 Michaels Ave, Syracuse, NY 13208.
To send condolences, visit: robertdgrayfuneralhome.com.
