Albert Floyd Collins

Albert Floyd Collins, 87, of Richmond, passed away at his home Monday, July 31, 2023 surrounded by friends and family. Albert was born July 22, 1936 to the late John and Della Collins. He was the loving husband of the late Janet Collins; proud father of Timothy (wife, Lynn), Patrick, Daniel (wife, Rhonda) and Matthew (wife, Rosanna) Collins; grandfather of Zachary, Claire, Tylar, Ryann, Carson, Cecilia, Arianna and Dario.  He was a long term member of the Richmond community, moving his young family there in 1972 and never leaving. Albert was passionate about history and craft. He was involved in Civil War reenactments for many years and took great pleasure in perfecting the details of what he wore so they would be as authentic as possible.  Up to a few days of his passing, he was involved in the Lac St Clair Voyageurs and Great Lakes Primitives groups, where he participated in gatherings and taught classes on how to make items such as turtle shell drums or deer bone fishhooks.  He was also a longtime member of the Richmond Area Historical and Genealogical Society.  He was instrumental in pulling together the first buildings of the Richmond Historical Village in Beebe Park. Al was truly a remarkable man who could turn his hand to many projects, large and small.  He could always be counted on to share a story about his latest project and would embellish the telling with little known details about the history surrounding it.  His skill in carving stone and painting was truly exceptional.  He created sculptures from Petoskey stones, magically unearthing bears, otters or a deer from the raw stone. He could while away the hours in his carriage house, working on his cannons or carving one of his pipes. In late July, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and quickly passed. But as he would commonly say anything that killed him at this point was just old age.  He was in his beloved Victorian home and surrounded by friends and family.  He will be greatly missed by his family and friends but leaves behind the legacy of the buildings, gardens and red brick paths in Beebe Park for generations to appreciate.

A Memorial Service will be held on September 30, 2023 information provided at a later date.