Services to be held Tuesday for Danny Clifford

Danny Clifford, a longtime Fallon native, died on Dec. 8, five days after being discharged from Banner Churchill Community Hospital where he stayed 12 days fighting COVID-19, the coronavirus that has taken more than a quarter-million lives in the United States. 
Graveside services will be held at the Fallon Cemetery on Tuesday at 1 p.m. The family has asked that you abide by all social distancing and safety protocols, including wearing a mask. A Celebration of Life will take place next year. Clifford was passionate about his family, community and, of course, baseball. He grew up in Fallon and pitched for the 1974 state championship baseball team, and his family were embraced by the community 21 years ago when his middle child, Brian, died from a rare form of liver cancer. Along with his wife, Debra, they continued to raise Eric and Sheila, instilling in them the importance of family and keeping to their faith, especially during life’s most trying times. “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate the sacrifices that my parents made for us, especially considering the medical attention that my brother, Brian, needed,” Eric said. “I’m awed at how my parents continued to raise us, meet our needs and showed us love, while balancing hospital visits and other setbacks, and eventually the loss of my brother. They left us an example of how to love each other through trying times, and how their faith in God kept them strong. I’ll be forever thankful for the example they’ve left.”

(A longer version of this story will appear online and in print on Wednesday).