Danny Lee Nichols

Danny Lee Nichols, 63, of Mulliken, died on September 2, 2025. He was born on September 28, 1961 in Coldwater, Michigan, to James and Dianna (Musselman) Nichols. Danny was a lifelong lover of animals and a hard, if not stubborn, worker. He was a kind, shy person, and a loving father and grandfather who, above all else, loved to be beside his family. Their best memories of him were on his farm in Jonesville, where he would often jump in the pen with his sheep—his favorite, the Shetland ram Beowulf—or his buffalo, Amos, who he raised and would chase around and play with. He was America’s, and maybe the world’s, best saw filer, and worked as a bandsaw filer at Buskirk’s in Freeport. He spent his life in love with his work in the lumber business, and he made sure that mills all over Michigan had saws with well-sharpened teeth.

Danny loved fishing and hunting, whittling, being with his family, and taking gentle care of his menagerie of dogs and farm animals for all his life.

Danny is survived by his children, Travis, Leslie, Ross, Nathan, and Nola Nichols; grandchildren, Braxton and Ruby Smith, and Dante and Cyrus Nichols; and his big brother Jimmy Nichols. He predeceased his parents, and will be remembered always as the soft-spoken man with his tender heart.

Friends are encouraged to support Danny’s family by or sharing memories on his Tribute Page at www.prayfuneral.com. The family is in the care of Pray Funeral Home, Charlotte.