Daniel Marshall Short, 84, passed away peacefully on Friday, January 23, 2026, surrounded by his loving family.
Born on November 28, 1941 in Springfield MA to Marshall and Madeline (Howland) Short, Dan graduated from Springfield Technical High School in 1959 and went on to a long career as an engineer, retiring from Combustion Engineering in 1989.
In retirement, Dan devoted his time to helping others, first as a volunteer at Foodshare and later as an Airport Ambassador at Bradley International Airport, where he proudly held the distinction of being the longest-serving volunteer.
Dan loved the outdoors, whether hiking, golfing, walking along the beach, or camping. He was also involved in Ancient fifing & drumming with both The Marquis of Granby and The 18th Connecticut Regiment Fife and Drum Corps for over 25 years.
He was married to his high school sweetheart Mary (Trombley) Short for 66 wonderful years.
He was predeceased by his eldest son David, his parents, his brother Douglas, and his sister Dorothy Santangelo.
He leaves behind his loving wife Mary, three sons, Michael Short and his wife Jill of Prospect CT, Gary Short and his wife Valerie of Liberty, ME, Matthew “Tom” Short and his wife Karen of Granby, CT; a daughter, Joanne Strange and her husband Rich Jensen of Southington, CT; a daughter-in-law, Linda Short of Montville, ME. He also leaves behind his brother, Donald Short; and sister, Diane McLure, and many nieces and nephews.
He leaves behind the joys of his life, his grandchildren; Madeline (Wes), Eliza, Jacob (Lisa), Chelsea, Dale (April), Heather (Trevor), Adam (Sarah), Brianna, Andrew, Katrina, Caroline (Justin), James (Avery), and Jodie, and great-grandchildren; Cameron, Malcolm, Mira, Esme, Ella, Violet, Piper, Lucas, Elena, Ryder, Keira, Kayden, and Madeline.
His family will receive friends on Monday, February 9, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., followed by a memorial service at 1 p.m., at the Hayes-Huling & Carmon Funeral Home, 364 Salmon Brook St., Granby. Burial will be private and at the convenience of the family.
The family would like to thank the wonderful staff of AccentCare Hospice and the 3rd floor staff at UConn Health-John Dempsey Hospital for their comfort and care.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Daniel, please visit the Carmon Community Funeral Homes website.