Longtime Palatine resident remembered as devoted volunteer who 'made helping people his passion'

Donald Van Cleave, who devoted himself to helping others after retiring from the Standard Oil Company, is being remembered for his nearly three decades of dedicated service behind the scenes at Palatine Township.

The longtime Palatine resident died Sept. 2. He was 89.

“What he represented is significant,” said Township Supervisor Andy-John Kalkounos. “‘Helping people' was his motto. Having more people like him in our community would make everything better.”

Kalkounos and the Palatine Township trustees presented Van Cleave's family last month with a plaque recognizing his contributions. The plaque now hangs prominently next to the entrance of the food pantry.

Van Cleave was born in 1932 in Des Moines, Iowa, where his father ran a hardware shop. He went on to study aeronautical engineering at the University of Iowa before serving in the Air Force during the Korean conflict and ultimately carving out a career in commercial sales with Standard Oil.

“My father was a hardworking person who, when he retired, made helping people his new passion,” said his son, Aron Van Cleave. “His faith was the driving force; he was driven to help people that were less fortunate.”

Anna Chychula, assistant administrator for Palatine Township, said Van Cleave volunteered twice a week in the food pantry and did whatever was needed, including shelving donations, recruiting larger contributions from businesses, helping clients select food items and even cleaning the floors.

“He lived a life of service and humble humanity,” Chychula said. “He never wanted any attention, but over the years he touched thousands of lives.”

Van Cleave also volunteered at Public Action to Deliver Shelter, the Palatine Senior Center and Northwest Community Hospital, as well as with veterans at the Capt. James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago.

But he always came back to the Palatine Township Food Pantry, which serves an average of 345 families a month. Residents come from Inverness and Palatine, as well parts of Arlington Heights, Barrington, Hoffman Estates, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg and South Barrington.

Besides his son and daughter-in-law Katy, Van Cleave is survived by his wife, Janet, as well as another son, Ryan and his wife, Victoria, and four grandchildren.

Services have been held.