The southern Ontario harness racing community has lost one of its longstanding members, as Standardbred horseman William ‘Callie’ Rankin passed away on Monday (June 24) at the age of 69.
Rankin, a Maritime horseman that has been an institution in the southern Ontario industry for decades, steered his drives to 3,700 wins over the course of his career. Horses that he drove earned over $9 million in career purses.
Rankin, of Dundas, Ont., also carved out a tremendous career on the training side of things, as he sent 8,856 starters to post and recorded 2,054 wins. Overall, his starters hit the board 4,388 times. His career UDR settled at a lofty .350, while starters from his stable raced to $6.79-million in purses.
Callie is survived by his wife, Brenda, and daughters Jennifer, Jeanette, Amber and Lindsay, as well as many other family members and friends.
Visitation will take place at Turner Funeral Home, 53 Main Street, Dundas, Ont., on Tuesday, July 2 from 2 - 4 p.m. and from 7 - 9 p.m.
A funeral service will take place at St Augustine’s Church, 58 Sydenham Street, Dundas, Ont., on Wednesday, July 3 at 11 a.m.
Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Callie Rankin.
To Brenda and All the
To Brenda and All the Family
Very sorry to hear of Callie's passing, he took a lot of horsemanship and knowledge with him. All the best to all the Rankin family
Callie was a great horseman,
Callie was a great horseman, a well respected man and a great friend. He will be truly missed.
Sincere condolences to all of his family and friends.
Dave
To Brenda and the whole
To Brenda and the whole family. Please accept my sincere condolences for your loss.
Callie was the first guy to get me on a jog cart and learn....very quickly.to steer a horse was such a great guy and a top notch driver. My favorite of all time. It is a funny story ...but this is how he taught me to sit on my first horse. It was in Sydney and we were at the track. I remember going into the barn and he had a horse all ready to jog. He always called me PORK CHOP :). I was 8 years old at the time, he told me to put on the helmet. Then he said, sit on the cart. He gave me the lines and said, how does it feel to be a driver. I was so excited. Then he just dropped the cross ties and said.....Bring her back when she's tired!!!! I still remember screaming to him to come and get her. But after 5 minutes that was all I wanted to do. He was an amazing man. I will never forget that. Or him. GOD BLESS CALLIE......You were one of a kind my friend.
PORK CHOP.
There are no words to express
There are no words to express how deeply saddened we are that Callie is gone. We remember him as a genuinely great guy who enjoyed a good laugh or playing a prank on a friend; a great family man and an all-around great horseman that will be very missed. Brenda and family, we are thinking of you.
The Robblee Family
Brenda: Debbie and I were
Brenda: Debbie and I were saddened to hear of Callie's passing. We always enjoyed catching up, whether at the track or the farm.
It seemed whenever we chatted, Callie was always busy lending a hand to someone in need. To all of you our deepest condolences.
Joe & Debbie
I must add, I remember one
I must add, I remember one Sunday afternoon at KD, Callie and Jen had 8 horses in all by themselves and I had one. So I ended up claiming one and had no stall. Callie being Callie, put one of his on his trailer so we could have a stall. Will never ever forget that.
C'mon man... Lord Tundering
C'mon man... Lord Tundering ____ Say it aint so... A nice man, a GREAT horseman. Loved his family and loved his business...
Rest in Peace Callie, and God Bless.
God Bless Callie and his
God Bless Callie and his family. What fun it was to go to Callie's and race -- as soon as he saw me he called out 'Here comes Yankee Doodle.' He always loved it when I would bring my two grandsons (he would wrestle with them every time). I will miss his humour and his knowledge. He was by far the greatest horseman I ever got to know, and also the most helpful.
It is with deep sorrow to
It is with deep sorrow to have received the news of Callie's death. Like Alex and Ronnie we have been lifetime friends. Callie where ever you are we are sure its a better place now than before you arrived. We'll miss your many visits to Cape Breton. To Brenda and the girls and the entire Rankin family our deepest sympathy.
Dave, Marg and Family.
My words cannot describe the
My words cannot describe the good friendship I had with Callie. How grateful I am to have known him since he was a child and admired his kindness, thoughtful heart & sense of humour. On all his trips to Cape Breton our friendship just got stronger, I will miss the visits.
Heartfelt sympathy to Brenda & family.
I was terribly sad and
I was terribly sad and heartbroken over hearing the loss of a stand-up man like Callie Rankin. We have been good friends all our lives, since we were little. He was always up for a sparring match and a good laugh, just a phone call away. His accomplishments are many and his impact in the racing world was very significant. He was absolutely an institution.
Callie was a man with an open heart, open arms, and always an open door. My memories of Callie run farther back than the record books and he will be greatly missed by myself and my family. To Brenda and the girls, we know the grief you are feeling right now, and we wish to extend our deepest sympathy and prayers.
The world would be a far brighter place if we could fill every corner with more men like Callie Rankin.
Rest in Peace, dear Callie. Until we meet again.
Very Sincerely, Ronnie & Linda Graham & Family
Barry and I send our
Barry and I send our heartfelt condolences to the Rankin family. Callie will be truly missed and certainly never be forgotten. He was a gentleman as well as a great horseman. We still repeat his many jokes and laugh at them every time they’re told. Sending our prayers to all of you. Barry and Deb
Very sad news! Callie, Sonny,
Very sad news! Callie, Sonny, and Donnie Rankin Jr are legendary in Maritime racing circles. Not to mention Donald Rankin Sr. Probably the most famous racing family ever from Cape Breton. He helped so many Maritimers get settled in Ontario. It's a tragedy that he is gone far too early, but he won't soon be forgotten. Condolences to the family, and cherish all the great memories!
I am very sorry for your
I am very sorry for your loss, I only knew Callie for about 15 years. He was a very fair and honest man, I often bought horses from Callie over the phone and was never disappointed, They were just as he had described them. Sending much love from myself, my girls, and our family. Rest peacefully Callie.
Your friend, The Newf.
So sorry to hear of Callie's
So sorry to hear of Callie's passing. A wonderful man , always with a smile and a helping hand. His family and horses were so important to him. I always enjoyed seeing him at the track. I knew our horses were well looked after in his care. Our sympathy to Brenda and family. Donna and Brittany Snowden
so sad--callie was a true
so sad--callie was a true gentleman--helping me when I trained horses or as a race secretary--always filling the box without question--I agree with gord browns comment--he would give anyone 100% shirt off his back--rest in peace and god bless
Rankin family, sorry for your
Rankin family, sorry for your loss. Callie was always the first to walk up to you on a snowy night and offer a place to stay for me and my horses should the roads get worse. This is just an example of who Callie was, great man, he will be missed.
Brenda and family,Rhonda and
Brenda and family,Rhonda and I are so sorry to hear of Callie,s passing,he was always available to talk about a problem a horse person might be having with a horse weather it be shoeing or just general horsemen ship he was interested in helping.I am so glad Callie,you Phonsie and Fran stopped in for a visit at Sunshine Meadows again this past winter .I have many fond memories of traveling to Saint John N.B. in the 70s for the stake races, you could always count on Callie and Marcel having time to chat with a kid from Truro.
Rest well, Callie. My
Rest well, Callie. My condolences to the Rankin family.
God bless Callie drive on
God bless Callie
drive on
Brenda and family, so sorry
Brenda and family, so sorry for your loss. Callie was a great horseman and even a better person! Always got along great and helped me with many horses over the years, as he was stabled right across from me at Kawartha. He would 100 percent give you the shirt off his back. The Rankins could fix up any throw-away horse. RIP Buddy.