Duane L Day

Duane Lee Day November 29, 1929 to June 9, 2026 Duane Lee Day, 96 years old, died on June 9, 2026, at home in Wildomar, California, with family by his side, after a brief illness. Duane was born on November 29,1929 in Flint, Michigan and was the son of Arlie Rudolph Day and Mary Ruth Yarnell. He had one sister, Joyce Arlene Day, who died in 1933 at the age of 19 months. Duane married Geraldine Lee, in Detroit, in 1951 and later, in 1964, married Patricia Joan Whipple in East Lansing, Michigan. On June 30, 1984 Duane married Charmaine Shirley, on Catalina Island, California, and they remained soul mates until his death. Along with his wife, Duane is survived by 5 children, Deborah Day Krull (Ken Krull) of Westmont, Illinois,. Rebecca Caplan (William Caplan) of State College, Pennsylvania, Kevin Day of Los Angeles, California and Patricia Day Ten Eyck of Vancouver, Washington. Duane saw his step daughter, Debra Coker of San Diego as his daughter in every sense of the word, and she loved and cared for him until the end. Duane is survived by 12 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren (and counting). Duane grew up in Detroit, Michigan and graduated Wayne State University in June, 1950, majoring in Speech. After college, and much soul searching, Duane attended Andover Newton Theological Seminary in Newton Centre, Massachusetts, graduating with a Master of Divinity degree in 1953. He was ordained into Christian ministry at Calvary Baptist Church in Dearborn, Michigan (his home church) on June 18, 1953. He later received a PhD in Divinity from Union Theological Seminary of Columbia University in New York. Duane spent the next 20 years ministering to different Congregational congregations from New Jersey to California, often also teaching at seminaries. He then became involved in fundraising and development for various institutions of higher education. In the mid 1970s Duane began his own business, Day and Associates, to continue his consulting work. He continued with his company until his retirement. As a young minister, Duane was involved with the Civil Rights movement while living in Cleveland, Ohio. He traveled to Mississippi to improve race relations. While championing this cause he met Martin Luther King, Jr on a few occasions. Duane was an intellectual and was a gifted speaker and writer, writing a couple of books on Ministry and the Church. He was a voracious reader, and would spend hours meditating on the state of the world. In his personal life, Duane loved animals, usually owning a dog or a cat, or several. Hi last dog, Teddy, was his constant companion and was by his side as Duane took his final breath. Like his father, Duane was an avid gardener, and his favorite flowers were his rose bushes. He was a huge American League baseball fan, first loving the Detroit Tigers and then the California Angels. Duane loved traveling with Charmaine. One of his favorite trips was to England where he was awestruck by his experiences. But his passion was sailing with Charmaine on their sailboat, Daybreak, and their favorite location was Catalina Island, the site of his wedding to Charmaine. They spent time in Catalina for many years. Duane lived a long life, full of education, faith, work and family. He will be missed by all who knew him. Funeral arrangements are under the care of Loma Vista Memorial Park in Fullerton, California. Contact family for more information.