Michael Corry Van Volkenburg's Obituary
Michael Corry Van Volkenburg, 78, of Eustis, Florida, passed away peacefully on Sunday, February 1, 2026. He was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, on November 24, 1947, the only child of George Elmer and Miriam Pauline Van Volkenburg. A lifelong resident of Florida, Mike spent his early years in St. Petersburg Beach, where a love for the outdoors and all things growing took root. His love of outdoor plants grounded him spiritually, and he tirelessly grew and nurtured fruits, vegetables, flowers and even trees.
In the 1990s, Mike began building model boats and joined the Orlando Scale RC Boat Club. Here, he raced his boats on Orlando lakes, making friends with a few like-minded people. During this time, he also obtained a professional photography certificate. Though he ultimately did not find that professional photography suited him, this early interest ultimately sparked an intense passion for digital art, and in later years, Mike happily whiled away many an hour creating and sharing his work with other artists on his Facebook page at Navim Art.
Mike had a long career at Citrus Central, later Crown Cork & Seal, a citrus canning plant. He eventually became the plant’s lithography color specialist until the plant closed. He and Carol moved to Eustis, Florida in 2011, but he continued to work as a courier for print concerns until 2012, but after open-heart surgery, he decided it was time to slow down, and he happily retired. Mike had looked forward to retirement, and he embraced it. When he was not working on his digital art, he was happily gardening outside the family home.
In 1986, Mike married Carol Sparks in Orlando, Florida. With Carol and her young son, John Paul Miller, the three made a family, that he loved and supported. His support was especially evident during Carol’s career change from nursing to law, which took which took quite a few years. As he grew to adulthood, Carol's son John began his own family, so that John had a partner and children of his own, all of whom Mike loved and welcomed with open arms.
Mike was preceded in death by his parents and the beloved family dog, Brian, who passed away shortly before Mike’s final illness.
He is survived by his devoted wife, Carol; his stepson John; John’s partner Daniella; and all of their children. He so loved being regarded as Grandpa Mike by Sadie, Gabe, Olivia, Ella and Lucy.
In honor of Mike’s love of trees, the family suggests that those wishing to make a memorial contribution consider supporting a reforestation organization, such as Friends of Florida State Forests.
https://floridastateforests.org/reforestation/
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