Frank Engle McCallum, age 71, died October 21, 2020, at CAMC Memorial Hospice House from respiratory failure due to pneumonia and COPD. Frank faced every situation with patience, humor, and bravery, especially during the final two weeks of his life.
He was born September 13, 1949, to Eleanor Lucile Pease and Robert Emory McCallum in Clarksburg, W.Va. Though he grew up in Charleston, Frank spent summers and holidays with his grandparents Edna and Engle Pease in Doddridge County, which he remembered as his happiest times. He maintained roots there throughout his life.
Educated at Charleston High School, West Virginia State College (now University) and Delgado Community College in New Orleans, La., Frank served in the U.S. Army in Germany and Vietnam. He was a member of the 101st Airborne Division and received The Bronze Star Medal in 1971.
Frank worked in offshore oil drilling for Exxon Corporation; as an ironworker with his brother Robert “Buck” McCallum in Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, and Florida; as an auto mechanic for Kmart; in sales at Bert Wolfe Ford where he was dubbed “king of the mini-deal”; and as an installer and trainer with Invisible Fence for Dogs. He retired as garage manager from Good News Mountaineer Garage in Charleston.
Frank was more at home in the deep woods or fishing off a bank or from a boat than anywhere on earth. He had a smile for everyone and could tell a great story from his own life experience. His parting words to anyone leaving his home were, “Keep it under a 100.” He would remind everyone, especially his wife, not to get in a hurry for fear of them hurting themselves or others. He treasured his family and friends, and helped them in any way he could.
Frank had a knack for numbers and an uncanny ability to compute sums in his head. He learned to count at an early age with his great-grandmother Grace Pease using a deck of playing cards. He prided himself on being a “saver,” opening his first bank account with money earned from delivering newspapers. Later, at drive-thrus and in convenience stores he would tell workers “Keep the Silver.” Any change given to him he gave right back, telling them to use it to buy something at lunch or for bus fare. Frank’s one-man campaign to give back was rewarded when a clerk said, “You’re that guy, I heard about you!” At doctor appointments or in an elevator, anywhere Frank had a captive audience, he
would get everyone talking or laughing. The more pain and medical problems he faced, the harder he worked to evoke laughter from strangers, medical personnel, and the people he loved.
Frank was a man of faith, quiet faith that gave him peace and the joy he so willingly shared. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Robert Emory McCallum III. His loving wife Deborah Sonis, sister Janet McCallum, cousin Livingston Bee, nieces Anne Sweeney, Rose Slater-McCallum, and Lauren Sonis, and six great nieces and nephews survive Frank. In addition to his family, lifelong friends Tom and Linda Sweeney and friends Wolf and JoAnn Handley showed tremendous care and love for Frank during his recent years of illness. Frank returned that love and more. He stayed optimistic and thought more about what he could do each day rather than what he could not.
Affordable Cremations of West Virginia is serving the McCallum family. A private graveside service will be held at the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Doddridge County in 2021.