Terry C McKinley

Terry C. McKinley, 85, passed away, after a long illness, on May 13, 2025, at home in South Lyon, MI. He was born on May 7, 1940, in Brighton, Michigan to the late William B. McKinley and Vivian (Miles) McKinley of New Hudson, Michigan. He is survived by his loving wife, Kristeen McKinley, of South Lyon; his children Donald (Marikaye) McKinley of Lakeland, Fl; Shawn (Liz) McKinley of Northville; Perry (Wendy) McKinley of Commerce Twp., and Susan (Joe) Forton of Lander, Wyoming; 7 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren; and his sister, Cheryl Druktenis of Broken Arrow, OK.; and many loving nieces, nephews and friends. He was preceded in death by his brother, William McKinley of Sante Fe, NM, and his sister Pamela Letzring of Marshall, Mi.
Terry retired as Purchasing Manager from Eaton Research and Engineering Center in Southfield, Michigan. After retirement he did many years of contract work for the Eaton Truck Components Division in Galesburg, MI, planning and setting up meetings/conferences around the country for the Truck Group and their customers. He also spent 40 years as a Board of Directors volunteer for Vibe Credit Union serving many of those years as Secretary of the Board. He got his private pilots license at the age of 17 and was co-owner of the New Hudson Airport with his father, brother and another partner before it was sold and became Oakland/Southwest Airport. He greatly enjoyed traveling, RV camping, boating, golfing, skiing, card games and getting together with family and friends. He was much loved and will be greatly missed.
A memorial service will be held on June 13, 2025, at the Little Village Chapel in McHattie Park's Historical Village, 300 Dorothy St., South Lyon, MI with a pre-visitation from 11:30am to 12:30pm and memorial service from 12:45pm to 1:45pm. A luncheon following will be held at the South Lyon Hotel, 2nd floor, 201 N. Lafayette St., South Lyon, MI from 2:00pm till 5:00pm.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Stroke Foundation (https://americanstroke.org) or the charity of your choice in Terry's name. To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of Terry, please visit our Tree Store.