Darren Paul Shavinski's Obituary
Our beloved Darren Paul Shavinski took his last breath on July 4th, 2024, in Crestview FL at his home with his wife Maria, and son Jake and brother Paul by his side. Darren is survived by his loving wife Maria, devoted son Jake, stepson Jacob and beloved dog Baxter. He is also survived by his mother Mary Shavinski (Workun) of Port Austin MI, sister Denise Shavinski Fidler and husband James Fidler, of Syracuse IN, brother Paul Shavinski and wife Terri of Viera FL and sister Danielle Shavinski of Port Austin, MI. He is also survived by his goddaughter and niece Karrah (Fidler) Teruya and her husband Micah of Syracuse IN, nephew Seth Fidler and wife Lindsey of Newport Beach, CA, Niece Makayla Fidler of Costa Mesa CA, niece Tressa Fidler of Grand Rapids MI, nephew Richard and nieces Reagyne and Tianna Allen all of Port Austin MI. Darren was preceded in death by his father Dennis Shavinski nephew Harrison Fidler.
PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS: Darren was most proud of being a father to his son Jake. He loved to brag about how talented and smart Jake was. Darren proudly served his country by enlisting 3 times with the US Navy from July 1985 through May 2013. His first tour was in Guam, and he served in Afghanistan for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. During his times of service, he was awarded the: Defense Service Medal, GWOT Service Deployment Ribbon, OVI Ribbon Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Afghan Campaign Medal, NATO ISAF medal and Sharpshooter marksmanship ribbon.
Darren retired from the US Postal Service after 29.5 years of being a mail carrier. He knew no strangers on his route and was loved by all his customers. On his days off, he could often be found sailing the St. Clair River or Anchor Bay and Harsen’s Island area on his sailboat-The Mistress. He was a self-taught accomplished sailor who sailed the Port Huron to Mackinaw Race aboard the Rowdy for many years, even helping to bring them to win first place in their division.
Darren had many talents and loved to fix or build things for others. Rarely did he visit family without repairing, painting, chopping or building something to make it function better. His love of animals-particularly birds and squirrels was entertaining to watch as he had names for all of them. Darren loved to cook and was particularly fond of making special sauces of his own. He also loved fine art, all things vintage, strong morning coffee alone on his Lanai and good conversation with the first person who was up to join him. He loved his Harley, the Florida Keys, the great lakes, the ocean, movies and music. He loved to tell jokes and stories and make people laugh.
A Celebration of Life will take place at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 31 at Young Funeral Home, China Twp. Memorial gathering will be from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. prior to the service. To leave the family a message of comfort please visit: www.youngcolonial.com
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