W. D. MCCausland III (1946-2022)

MCCAUSLAND

Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 2/13/2022 at 08:51:21

Sunday, February 13, 2022
W.D. 'Mac' McCausland III

Las Vegas, Nev.

Walter Delmont "Mac" McCausland III, successful business and community leader and longtime radio and TV color analyst, died of natural causes on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, at his home in Las Vegas, Nev., at the age of 75. His sudden passing came as a shock to his friends and family.

Mac was born Feb. 25, 1946, in Davenport, Iowa, son of Julia Jeanne Steele McCausland and Walter Delmont "Mac" McCausland II. He had a younger sister, Sue, who fondly calls him "Macky." He employed his little sister to help him deliver the Des Moines Register, mow lawns and maintain the baseball diamonds during the summer. The McCausland family loved spending summers at their cabin in Rochford, S.D., fishing, swimming in hot springs, playing cribbage, croquet and chess. Mac was the high school quarterback, qualified for the state golf tournament, played baseball and was a basketball standout. He was senior class president and on student council and homecoming court. He sang bass in the choir and was the lead in the play Our Town. He graduated from Maquoketa High School in 1964 and took his talents to The University of Iowa. Mac was a walk-on basketball player on the men's team under coach Ralph Miller and then served as the freshman team assistant coach. He was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity and received his Bachelor's of Business Administration with an advanced degree in insurance. It was on the beautiful Iowa City campus where Mac met and fell for Linda McConnelee. The two shared a love for playing sports, their fraternity and sorority events and dancing the night away!

A marriage to Linda and a move to Waterloo soon followed where he began working for Vaughan & Pedersen Insurance. They welcomed their children, Amy Jo "A.J." and Michael Kent, and shared many great memories as a family on vacations and cheering on the Hawks. He and Linda divorced after nearly 25 years of marriage, and they remained friendly and actively involved in the celebrations, activities and precious moments of the lives of their children and grandchildren. He was sad to lose his friend, Linda, when she passed away unexpectedly in September of 2020.

Mac was passionate about his work in the insurance industry, hustled to make connections and took the best care of his clients. Mac was a Partner at PDCM Insurance and worked across industries consulting on business insurance and building relationships with clients and friends. Over his career leading the team at PDCM, he was known to say, "Let's do the best for the most." He still managed to drop by the office in his retirement, and the PDCM team enjoyed these entertaining interactions.

Mac was actively involved in many local organizations during his career and known to be a generous philanthropist. He was known for his fundraising expertise and played an essential role in what the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Cedar Valley is today. He was actively involved in the community and loved hanging out at Friday Loo Summer Concert Series, Iowa Irish Fest, Bike Nights, the Harley Party, live music and festivals and, of course, Damon's Sports Bar & Grill.

People have described Mac as unique, charismatic and a force. He had as diverse a set of hobbies as he did friends. He played pickup basketball games at noon at River Plaza until he was 70, was an enthusiastic gardener, and an avid sports cards, newspaper and memorabilia collector. Over his lifetime, Mac taught his family to, "spend your money on experiences not things." He attended multiple NBA playoff games, Indy 500 races, NFL football games and Hawkeyes Basketball and Football tournaments and bowl games. He was a diehard fan of the Cleveland Browns and Indians and Muhammed Ali. He also loved going to concerts including Meatloaf, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Def Leppard, Journey, Imagine Dragons and, his recent favorite, Lady Gaga. He biked in dozens of RAGBRAIs and through Tuscany, Prague and California Wine Country.

Generations of Hawkeye fans know Mac as a radio voice and television color analyst for Hawkeye men's basketball for multiple decades. Later in his announcing career, he enjoyed being a voice of the Missouri Valley Conference. Mac and Kent were on the weekly Black & Gold Breakdown tv show, and he was a basketball columnist for the Voice of the Hawkeyes. Mac served on the National I-Club Board, was honored as the National I-Club Hawk of the Year, Lifetime Honorary Director in 1993, and was the recipient of the 1994 Iowa Letterwinners Club Distinguished Service Award. In 2002, he was awarded an Iowa Letterwinners Club Honorary Letterwinner. He also served as a longtime president of the Black Hawk County I-Club.

Mac's love for basketball and his Iowa Hawkeyes was only bested by his love for his family and friends. He beamed with pride when he spoke of his kids and grandkids. He loved talking about Amy's bowling scores, clarinet performances at church and community band, and their shared passion for Hawkeye sports. He and Amy absolutely loved the Indy 500 and attended three in person. Michael has great memories of road tripping to Wichita for bowling camp with his Grandpa Mac. Jenna loved bike riding through George Wyth and talking endlessly about music together. Mac coached the Waterloo Boys & Girls Club Runnin' Rebels AAU Team, with a highlight of placing 6th in the country with the 1993 team. He was not only the coach, but a mentor and father figure to many on the team. He sat courtside at Carver, either announcing or cheering Kent on during his exciting career as a three-year starter under the leadership of Dr. Tom Davis. The two were more like bros than father-son. They loved golfing, talking hoops, attending sporting events, and grabbing lunch during the workday as Kent also became a Partner at PDCM. Jay loved seeing Grandpa Mac in the stands, playing golf, and looking at sports cards. Casey enjoyed going to Iowa games and riding in his red convertible. The Greves and McCauslands all loved their Sunday afternoon grill outs at Mac's, water balloon and squirt gun fights, tailgating in Iowa City and their over-the-top Christmas celebrations!

His retirement years took him to Las Vegas, where he saw all the greatest shows the city had to offer. He loved the energy and seemed to make new friends every time he visited. Mac's family is at peace that he made one last trip to the city he also called home. He was known to commonly say, "You can sleep when you're dead." Well Mac, it's finally time for you to rest. You got everything done and crossed off your list. As you famously said on air when the Hawks had a game locked away, "It's chips and salsa time!" Mac, Grandpa Mac, Macky, Macker, Mac Daddy - We love you and will miss you so much!

Mac is survived by his two children, Amy (Ryan) Greve and Kent (Traci) McCausland, all of Waterloo; and four grandchildren, Michael and Jenna Greve and Jay and Casey McCausland. He is also survived by his sister, Sue McCausland of Iowa City; and nieces, Abby and Caitlin Ross.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Julia Jeanne Steele McCausland and Walter Delmont "Mac" McCausland II; grandparents, Gladys and J.M. Steele; grandparents, Walter Delmont McCausland I and Mildred McCausland Fickel; uncle, Jim Steele; and aunt, Claire Zanders.

A public visitation will be held at Locke at Tower Park Funeral Home at 4140 Kimball Ave., in Waterloo from 3 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 15, followed by a private family service and private burial at Waterloo Memorial Park Cemetery on Wednesday, Feb. 16. Mac always said, "Have a big party when I'm gone," so an outdoor Celebration of Life for the public will be held in Waterloo in a few months. There will be plenty of food, drinks and music…just the way Mac would like to say his final goodbye.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial gifts be made to the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Cedar Valley, the Waterloo Community Foundation, or the Mac32 Basketball Excellence Fund at the University of Iowa Foundation at P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, IA 52244-4550. Please visit Locke at Tower Park at www.lockefuneralservices.com for the full obituary and more information.