Donald Rawlins, 87, of Capac, MI died Friday, September 22, 2023, surrounded by his loving family at his home. Today we lost our beloved husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, uncle and friend. Donald Dean and Donna Jean were born July 11, 1936 in Dryden, MI. They were two of five children born to the late Bernard and the late Vivian (Hutchins) Rawlins. Donald grew up in Capac. He was raised by his Uncle Don and Aunt Blanche Kalbfleisch. In 1948, he went to spend a two week vacation with them, and he never left. He graduated from Capac High School Class of 1954. Played football at Adrian College and attended Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti. He married Margaret Elaine Cody on September 6, 1958, at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church in Emmett, Michigan.
Don was a man of ethics and integrity; people were drawn to him by his dry sense of Rawlins humor. He was a hard worker and always provided for his family; sometimes working two or more jobs. He worked as a milk can hauler in the Capac area. Don and Elaine moved to the Ann Arbor area to finish his education. There he worked as a mail room foreman at the Ann Arbor News and Ypsilanti Press, for Firestone Rubber and as a part time deputy for the Washtenaw Co. Sheriff’s Department. Don and Elaine moved back to the Capac area in 1969. He worked construction until 1972 and at the St. Clair County Road Commission, becoming a district foreman. Don became a rural route mail carrier at Capac Post Office. He worked there for over ten years before retiring. He enjoyed coaching Little League Baseball in Capac from 1969-1987. The ‘Texting Grandpa’ even coached a ball game on the morning of his daughter’s wedding.
Don is survived by his wife, Elaine Rawlins of Capac; daughters, Deborah (Al) Steaban and Karen (Tom) Niazy; sons, Brian Rawlins, Donald Rawlins, Michael (Kelly) Rawlins, and Douglas (Heather) Rawlins; 21 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. He will also be missed by many nieces, nephews, and sons-of-the-heart, Tom Schafer , Chad Hollenbeck, Daryl Brunelle, and Ernie Monarch.
Don was preceded in death by his daughter, Amy Rawlins; daughter-in-law, Carol Rawlins; sisters Barb Kirby, Donna Ryks (his twin sister), Nancy Barker, Dorothy Morris; his parents, Bernard & Vivian Rawlins and Don and Blanche Kalbfleisch (the adoptive parents who raised him).
A Funeral Mass of Christian burial was held Tuesday, September 26, 2023, at Our Lady Of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church, 10828 Brandon Road, Emmett, MI. Rev. Fr. Tom Kuehnemund will be officiating. Burial followed in Our Lady Of Mount Carmel Cemetery, Kenockee, MI.
Funeral arrangements made by Muir Brothers Funeral Home of Imlay City, 225 N. Main Street, Imlay City, MI
Please be sure to sign our on-line register book at www.muirbrotherfh.com to share your memories and condolences with the Rawlins family.
