September 16, 1938 – July 31, 2020
On Friday, July 31, 2020, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease, William J. (“Bill”) McCallen passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his wife of 54 years and his 3 children.
Bill was a lifelong resident of Portland, Oregon. He was the son of the late William and Helen (Etzel) McCallen. He originally lived in Willbridge, Oregon, right next door to his cousin, baseball colleague, and the future best man at his wedding, Joe Etzel. His family later moved to Raleigh Street in Northwest Portland where he grew up and developed a large circle of lifelong friends. The Raleigh Street home was adjacent to St. Patrick’s parish where Bill began serving as an altar boy. His faith would become a great source of comfort to him, particularly in his later years.
Baseball played a huge role in Bill’s life. He started young, working as a ball boy, a bat boy and in the dugout for the Portland Beavers of the Pacific Coast League and also played catcher for the St. Patrick’s elementary school baseball team. As a fifth grader, Bill was chosen as the District 9 prince for the 1940 Junior Rose Festival Court (where his speech was, of course, about baseball). His talent as a catcher earned him full athletic scholarships to both Central Catholic High School (class of 1956) and The University of Portland (class of 1960). While at The University of Portland, he, and his cousin Joe Etzel, served as co-captains of the baseball team. Bill was also a member of the Premier Gear baseball team, who won the Semi Pro National Baseball Championship in 1961. A bat depicting the names of the members of that team was displayed for 20 years in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.
In 1964 he met the love of his life, Nancy (Kurilo) McCallen. The couple married in 1965, and built a home in Cedar Mill, Oregon, where they raised their children and lived for 38 years. Bill worked in truck leasing for over 40 years, with stints as a salesman, manager, and general manager/vice president. In retirement, the couple moved to the Claremont community in Bethany where Bill enjoyed meeting many new people and reconnecting with the people he knew from his younger years on his daily walks.
Bill is remembered for a laugh that could light up any room, his quick wit, his love of any party, particularly if it involved dancing, and his love of country music. He was deeply devoted to his wife, his children, and his extended family. In 2012, Bill recovered from a serious cardiac arrest thanks to CPR performed by a good samaritan, which allowed him to see the weddings of his two youngest children and meet his two grandchildren.
In addition to his wife, Nancy, Bill is survived by his children Becky Gregory (Jarrod), Amy McCallen Nunan (Joe) and Ryan McCallen (Alexandra), his two grandchildren, Cooper and Emma, his two sisters, Joyce Medica and Karen Walcott, and his extended family.
A funeral Mass will be held for the immediate family only at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church on Thursday, August 6, 2020 at 9 a.m. If you would like to attend virtually, please send an email to [email protected] and the family will send directions. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Oregon Chapter of the American Alzheimer’s Association.
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