Obituary
In the care of Solemn OaksFrank Osborn, 68, of Newaygo, died Saturday, August 8, 2026, at home, and left behind seven cedar-strip kayaks, each one built by hand in his garage over a winter, each one named — in small brass letters on the bow — for one of his seven granddaughters.
He was born April 30, 1958, in Big Rapids, and spent thirty-one years as an operator at the power plant, most of them on night shift, watching gauges in the dark so the rest of the county woke up warm. It was steady, serious work and he was good at it, but it was not the work that held his heart. That started the year he retired, when his wife suggested he find a hobby and he took the instruction considerably further than she had in mind.
He taught himself to build cedar-strip boats from a library book and a stubbornness his family recognized. The first one nearly beat him; the seventh was good enough to make a boatwright weep. Each took a winter of thin cedar, epoxy, and swearing from the garage, and each was launched in the spring on the Muskegon River with the granddaughter it was named for aboard, whether or not she wanted to be. He paddled that river in every season, knew its every sweeper and gravel bar, and believed — out loud, often — that there was no problem a morning on the water could not at least postpone.
He was a patient teacher, a terrible card player, and the kind of grandfather who answered can we with let's find out. He kept his tools sharp and his coffee strong, wore the same brand of work boots for forty years, and could fix nearly anything with what was already in the drawer.
He asked that no one make a fuss, that the boats stay in the family and stay in the water, and that somebody teach the youngest girl, who is four, to paddle when she is ready.
He is survived by his wife of forty-four years, Cindy; his children, Nathan (Erin) Osborn of Newaygo, Katie (Brett) Vanderwall of Grand Rapids, and Sara Osborn of Newaygo; seven granddaughters, each with a boat; his brother, Doug (Lynn) Osborn of Cadillac; and a river he would want you to go see.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Gordon and Joan Osborn.