Darrin Michael Grimstead, 52, of Virginia Beach, went home to be with the Lord on August 18, 2020. Darrin was the son of Carey and the late Carol Grimstead of Virginia Beach. He is survived by his sister, Gail (Merlin) Swartzentruber of Virginia Beach, nieces Laurel (Matt) Cheniae, Holly (David) Johnson, Sonya (Ryan) Ramsey, and 2 great nephews, Merrick Cheniae and Lachlan Johnson, all of Chesapeake.

Darrin was born in Lansing, Michigan where his family lived close to his maternal grandparents, Walter “Mike” and Louise Klages. When he was 11, his family moved to Virginia Beach and his grandparents moved to Frederick, MD. He was a 1986 graduate of Kellam HS.  As a teenager, Darrin spent his summers in Frederick with his grandparents. After his grandmother died in 1988, Darrin moved to Frederick and lived with his grandfather until his retirement in 1991. While in Frederick, Darrin took a job fueling airplanes at a small airport and followed that career path all the way to becoming a line supervisor fueling commercial passenger jets at Norfolk International Airport.

Darrin was a lifelong enthusiastic sports fan, particularly of the Baltimore Orioles, and later of the Denver Broncos. He enjoyed minor league baseball and would sometimes travel for hours to attend a game. An avid collector of sports cards and memorabilia, his enthusiasm for sports never waned.

Darrin was a self-taught artist, who particularly enjoyed sketching doodles and drawing portraits. Darrin loved to read and could seldom be found without a book in hand. He also loved movies and television and had few peers in Trivial Pursuit. Darrin had a great sense of humor and loved to laugh; his laugh was loud, boisterous and infectious. Darren also loved birds and had numerous feeders that he maintained around the yard.

Darrin’s greatest love, though, was reserved for his family, especially his three nieces. When the oldest, Laurel, started talking, she had difficulty saying, “Darrin” and called him “Danny” instead. He has been “Danny” to the family ever since. Danny refused to work Sundays so that he could attend church, which nearly cost him the opportunity for the job at Norfolk International, but they gave him a schedule that allowed him to have Sunday and Monday off. From the time the girls were little, Monday was “Danny Day”. He would take them to movies, to the zoo, museums, parks, baseball games, to swim, and sometimes all the way to Aurora, NC to hunt for shark teeth, and many other places. Each girl was given a single dollar each week to spend in the Dollar Tree. These days always included lunch and a Slurpee.  “Danny Day” will always hold a very special place in the hearts of Laurel, Holly and Sonya.

After his mother’s passing in 1995, Darrin lived with his father. He and Carey enjoyed their weekly jaunts to thrift stores and going out to eat. They also enjoyed traveling and took numerous trips through the years covering the entire Mideast from New England to Florida and as far west as Arizona. They shared a love of military aviation and a disdain of interstates. Their routes through the highways and byways led to the discovery of many interesting, yet lesser-known attractions. Whenever Darrin traveled, family members at home could be sure to receive several postcards during his travels, written in neat script worthy of any comic book artist.

Darrin was always active in church. He started helping out in the toddlers class many years ago and continued in that position for the remainder of his life. While he loved to sing, he was never one to be the center of attention and avoided the limelight as much as possible. Thus, it came as a mild surprise to those who knew him best when he started doing solos, duets and other specials in church. His talent and willingness to serve eventually led to him becoming the song leader at Creeds Church of Christ. Darrin had a great voice and was a talented narrator, leading to many opportunities to narrate or read in special services.

When he was diagnosed August 1^st with a brain tumor, Darrin took it in stride. His deep and abiding faith in Christ was evident as he faced this challenge with humor and grace. He never wanted to be a burden on anyone and his nurses and therapists in the hospital described him as a gentleman and a model patient, never complaining or fretting about his situation. He maintained a positive attitude and shared with them his faith in Christ.

There will be a memorial and home-going celebration at 10 AM, Saturday, August 22, at the Church of Christ at Creeds.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Darrin’s name to Cookson Hills, a Christian mission school serving at-risk youth. Your gift will be doubled through a matching grant by following these guidelines:

Give online at https://cooksonhills.org/donate/  ,  in the dropdown box that says “Please direct my donation to a certain fund or dedication:” drop down to “In memory of” and type in “Darrin Grimstead / Matching Grant”.

Or, to mail a check, write “Darrin Grimstead / Matching Grant” in the memo line and send it to:

Cookson Hills
60416 Highway 10
Kansas, OK 74347