Roy VanderKallen Laid to Rest
Thousands braved the chill of a winter night in 1982 to see Corona police officer Roy VanderKallen lead his team to a victory over a team of Corona firefighters in a tackle football game at Corona High School.
On Monday hundreds of mourners radiated warmth for VanderKallen at a memorial service for the late police captain who died on Oct. 4. The Civic Center auditorium, which used to be Corona High, was nearly full.
VanderKallen was 70.
Dutch by birth, VanderKallen was born in Papua, New Guinea while his father, Wilhelmus, served in the Netherlands Royal Army. His mother was Gertruda VanderKallen.
Roy was the sixth of 12 children, the family emigrated to the United States in 1957. VanderKallen played football at Chaffey High School in Ontario, then in college and semi-pro football for the Orange Crush of Ontario. Brothers, Johnny, Francis, and Honnie were teammates.
The Corona Police Department hired him in 1978 and he climbed the ranks to captain before retiring in 2004.
In addition to his athletic ability, VanderKallen was best known for his charitable work through his membership in Kiwanis. He co-founded the Arc Angel Foundation which became Tommy’s Angels, and he created the Roy and Melissa VanderKallen scholar-athlete scholarship.
He is survived by his wife, Melissa, and children, Stephanie, Heidi, and Austin, six grandchildren, and eight of eleven siblings.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Tommy’s Angels in the care of: Brent Coleman at Brent Coleman/Tommysangels.2017@gmail.com.
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