Daniel M. Kaylor

Daniel Murray Kaylor, 81, of Rockford, Illinois passed away on Monday, July 6, 2026. Dan was born in Chicago on June 21, 1945 to Florence Dean (Swain) and Murray Kaylor, but moved to Rockford at a young age. Dan was an only child and sometimes felt lonely. At the age of 14, Dan made a friend named Kenny Carlson, or Pete Carlson, depending on who was calling his name. Kenny was part of a large family and Dan loved visiting there and being a part of all the hullabaloo. Although Kenny's father had passed away, his Mom was a special lady and welcomed Dan to the mix. These two maintained their friendship through the next 65 years. They consider themselves brothers, always there for each other in both good times and bad.

After graduating from East High School, Dan joined the Navy. He served on the USS Bushnell, a sub-tender. He worked as an instrument repairman. They were based out of Key West, Florida and sailed the Caribbean Sea from June 1966 to November of 1969.

In 1969, Dan wed the former Mary Highland. Together they were blessed with two sons, Jeffrey and Jonathan.

After leaving the Navy, Dan became a Fireman for the City of Rockford in 1973. He aced the written tests. The average score of 148 firefighters who completed the test was 185.9. Dan scored 224. Dan was a very intelligent young man. He filled this role for five years.

Dan also worked for several manufacturing plants in Rockford, among which were Osmonics, Slick Electro, Aquamatic, and Alert Tubing. He worked for Alert Tubing several times, as they would pursue him to come back because he was so good at bending tubes for things such as a cow stanchion, a metal gate, etc. Dan retired from Alert Tubing in 2007 after suffering a heart attack.

In 1974, Dan joined a men's club at Broadway and 9th Street called the LLL Club, standing for Live and Let Live. He enjoyed visiting with many friends there, playing cards and entering pool tournaments. Dan won their yearly pool tournament four different years. He was also a member of their Fishing Club. The LLL Club is also where in 1980, he met his future wife, Pat Wright. Six years later, in 1986, they were married and combined their two families, Dan's two boys, Jeff (Deanna) and Jon (Cordie) Cacciatore, Pat's two girls, Laura and Julie Wright, and her two boys, Dan (Wendy) Wright and Shawn (Vickie) Wright. Presently they are blessed with nine grandchildren, Leandra Cacciatore, JJ Cacciatore, Ryan Bressler, Bobby Quies, Abigail Wright, Alyssa Barnewold, Aaron Wright, Langdon Galyean, and Fiona Hawkins. They also have six great-grandchildren, Emery, Christian, Faith, Jeanette, David, Daphne, and Georgia.

Over the years, things were sometimes a struggle as Dan struggled with alcohol. However, thanks to AA and Alanon, and Dan's fortunate will, he finally was able to overcome the struggle. Dan and Pat shared several special trips over the years. They traveled to the Seattle area twice, once by plane to attend son, Shawn's wedding, and once by train. A Trip to Lake of the Woods in the extreme North of Minnesota to visit Pat's elderly Uncle Walter was also a special time to go fishing in the Lake of the Woods. Even though it rained the whole day, and they came back sopping wet, they also caught a nice bunch of fish. They also traveled to Branson, Missouri twice, on one trip stopping on the way to go up in the St. Louis Arch, touring Mammoth Cave and visiting Dan's son Jon in Louisville and attending the Kentucky Derby.

At home, Dan loved to read. He was a speed reader and collected every Stephen King book printed, as well as many others. He was an avid reader of the newspaper, both the Rockford paper and the ChicagoTribune. He loved to do the Sudoku and the crosswords, the hard ones. Pat got the easy ones. He also enjoyed games of Chess and Euchre.

Dan was an unfailing fan of the Cubs and the Bears. The Cubs were the main interest he had in his last days, after putting away the newspapers, books, and puzzles. He will most certainly be watching their progress even from Heaven.

Dan did not claim to be a Christian; he was not raised in a Christian home and lived his life without thought of Christ. However, in his last hospital stay, when Dan had just tired of the struggles of his failing body, and chose to enter Hospice, Dan turned to God. He apologized to God for rejecting him and said that God had forgiven him. As Pat came to see him one day, he had a big smile on his face and when asked what he was smiling about, Dan said that he had discovered that God was real and he asked Pat to tell everybody that God was real. He made that request of Pat at least six times. On the next visit, she again found Dan with a smile on his face. When asked what for again, Dan said that he just felt God all around him and it felt wonderful. God's forgiveness and loving touch upon Dan's shoulders definitely gave Dan the courage, the strength, and the peace of mind to decide it was time to say goodbye to the life he thoroughly had enjoyed, but which had now become a burden. He now had a glimpse of a better place that he could journey to and be made whole again. Thanks be to God.

Dan is preceded in death by his parents, Florence and Murray Kaylor and by step-daughter, Laura Wright Cozzi. Also by his doggy daughter, Shannon, the German Shepherd whom he adopted when he married Pat. Numerous other dogs joined the family over the years, but for Dan, none ever stole his heart in the same way. Dan will be well missed by his friends, his wife, his sons and their families, and his step-children and their families. The world was a better place because he was in it. His smile, his kindness, and his generosity will not be forgotten. Memories of him will live on in the hearts if those who loved him and wish him "Godspeed, Danny Boy".

Visitation will be held at Sunset Funeral Home, 8800 North Alpine Road, Machesney Park, IL 61115, on Thursday, July 16, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am, followed by the Funeral at 11:00 am. Final resting at Sunset Memorial Gardens.