Dan C. McKay

Daniel Clifford McKay, 74, of Mooreton, ND, passed away unexpectedly at his home on Sunday, March 15, 2026.

A visitation in his honor will be held at Vertin Munson Funeral Home on Friday, March 20, 2026, from 5-7 PM. His funeral service will be held at Vertin Munson Funeral Home on Saturday, March 21, 2026, at 11 AM, with visitation one hour before.

Dan was born on June 9, 1951, to Clifford and Alice (Lindberg) McKay. Dan was the youngest of eight children. He grew up on the family farm south of Dunseith, ND. He attended and was confirmed at Peace Lutheran Church.

Dan graduated from high school in Dunseith. After high school, he attended North Dakota State University, where he obtained his bachelor's degree in Agricultural Engineering and studied French to prepare himself for the Peace Corps. After college, Dan spent four years in Africa, broken into three trips, first with the Peace Corps, the second time with the Methodist Missionaries, and the third time with a former colleague. They rode across the continent of Africa by motorcycle, traveling hundreds of miles, retracing Henry Morton Stanley's footsteps to find Dr. David Livingston. They recorded their findings and experiences in a documentary film. You could always count on Dan to share a story about his time in Africa.

When Dan returned to North Dakota, he married Lynn Hill and moved to Watford City, ND. They had four children, ElizaBeth, Alison, Christopher, and Naomi. Dan was a welder for Heggen Equipment and later drove an oil rig truck while working in the oil field during the boom in the 80's. In the early 90's, Dan began working for Prime Board as a Product Engineer in Wahpeton, ND, so the family moved to the southeastern corner of the state. After working at Prime Board, he had various jobs until he decided to retire.

Dan had many passions in life, which he shared with his children. Dan enjoyed fishing and hunting various game with his son, Chris. The most recent hunt Chris took Dan on was for elk in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Dan also enjoyed traveling, especially with his adventurous sisters. Most recently, Dan was happy to join them on a cruise through the Panama Canal. Other hobbies Dan was fond of were metalworking, tinkering in his shop or barn, stargazing, wildflower picking, long phone calls, but most of all, he loved horses. He shared this love of horses with his children and grandchildren, taking them to many horse shows and trail rides throughout their childhood and also as adults. Dan accompanied ElizaBeth to multiple mounted shooting competitions across Minnesota, North Dakota, and Montana, spending the summers sleeping in the horse trailer and cheering her on while she competed. Dan spent many years as an active member of the Hankinson Sandhills Saddle Club, where he met many lifelong friends. Dan took pride in participating in shooting .22 pistols at the Havana Hand Gun Club, trap shooting at the Rutland Gun Club, and Cowboy Action Shooting under the western name of 'Hors'n Henry.' It was also a tradition to attend the Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion in Rollag every year with family and friends.

Dan's absolute favorite part of life was being a proud grandfather. He admired all of his grandchildren and loved attending any gatherings that surrounded them. He carried his tradition of reading bedtime stories to his children and reading bedtime stories to his grandchildren. The grandchildren could count on Grandpa Dan to read one more book.

Dan was always there when you needed him, always willing to lend a hand, and always had a story to tell. He will be missed by all who knew and loved him.

Dan is survived by his children, ElizaBeth (Kyle) McKay, Alison (Kyle) Booth, Christopher (Kristi) McKay, and Naomi (Dave) Peterson. Grandchildren Sawyer, Emma, Hadley, Iris, Zayne, Eden, Nora, and Audra. Siblings Minnie Mary Merrill, Clayton "Kick" McKay, Jay McKay, Bill and Mary Elise McKay, Phyllis McKay, and Patsy McKay Heggen; and several nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Dan is preceded in death by his parents, Clifford and Alice McKay; sister, Myra Anderson; brothers-in-law; Charlie Anderson, Ed Merrill, and Edward Leo Schull; sister-in-law, Janis McKay; godchild and niece Rennee McKay; nieces, Sonja Anderson and Jami Anderson; nephews, Eric Lundeen, Duane Link; great nephews, Michael Rameden, Donnie McKay, and Brandon McKay.

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