Mack’s Prairie Wings president and CEO Marion McCollum, who helped turned his family’s sporting goods store in Stuttgart into a mecca for waterfowlers, has died at age 81.
The company shared the news of McCollum’s death in a Facebook post Thursday evenining. A cause of death was not provided.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the shocking and devastating news of the passing of our legend, Marion McCollum, who dedicated his life to teaching the next generation the heritage of the outdoor sportsman,” the post says. “Mack’s Prairie Wings may never be the same, but we assure you that his legacy will continue on as we serve our customers the way Marion taught us.”
McCollum and his father Mack in the 1930s started what would become Mack’s Prairie Wings as an addition to the family hardware store on Main Street. They launched a standalone location in 1944, and over the years, the business expanded its hunting and fishing inventory and relocated numerous times. It now occupies more than 104,000 SF of space on U.S. 63 in Stuttgart and reaches millions of shoppers each year through its catalogs and online store.
Ram Venture Holdings Corp. of Little Rock had hoped to buy Mack’s Prairie Wings in 2004 for $8.5 million, but the deal never happened.
McCollum was also known for his contributions to habitat conservation. From 1995 to 2002, he served as a commissioner with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and was chair in his final year with the agency. During his tenure, the agency acquired what is now the Rick Evans Grandview Prairieview Management Area and Conservation.
He was a lifetime member of Ducks Unlimited, Waterfowl USA and Delta Waterfowl. McCollum also served on the Board of the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation, the fundraising arm of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.
McCollum was inducted into the Legends of the Outdoors National Hall of Fame in 2007, the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation Outdoor Hall of Fame in 2008, and received the Jerry Jones Sportsman’s Award by Little Rock Ducks Unlimited in 2010.
He was inducted into the inaugural class of the Waterfowler Hall of Fame in 2016.
Funeral arrangements had not been announced Friday.
Macks’ Prairie Wings said that in lieu of flowers, the McCollum family suggests donating to the Marion McCollum Endowment Fund at the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation. The fund supports youth shooting sports programs.
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