Darlene Mae McAllister

Darlene Mae (Loock) McAllister, age 88, of Yankton, South Dakota, passed away peacefully on June 6, 2026, at Avera Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton while under hospice care and surrounded by family.

Darlene was born on February 5, 1938, in Spencer, Nebraska, to Frank and Bernice (Marlatt) Loock. She attended Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska, and married Edward J. McAllister on May 29, 1957.

Together, Darlene and Edward built a life near Spencer, Nebraska, where Edward worked as a farmer, teacher, and bookkeeper and Darlene was a homemaker and mother. She also worked in bookkeeping for several businesses and later spent more than ten years in the Accounting Department at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Together, Darlene and Edward raised seven children and were blessed with fifteen grandchildren: Leon (Valerie) McAllister and their children, Megan and Melissa; Mark (Shanell) McAllister and their children, Shawna, Logan, Staci Jo, and Shaleigh; Brian (Rita) McAllister and their children, Brandon and Amber; Julie (Levy) Firmin and their son, Levy III; Kyle (Andrea) McAllister and their children, Mackenzie and Cole; James (Lisa) Danson and their children, Jessica and Jonathan; and Camron McAllister and his children, Luke and Morgan.

She is also survived by twenty-nine great-grandchildren; her sister-in-law, Barbara Loock; and her nieces and nephews, Patty Christen, Sherri Tafoya, Wayne Loock, and Lori Swindell, children of her late brother, Richard Loock. Darlene also enjoyed lifelong relationships with many members of the McAllister family.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Edward J. McAllister; her son, Mark McAllister; her brothers, Leonard and Richard Loock; her nephew, Doug Loock; and her parents, Frank and Bernice Loock.

Darlene's greatest pride was her marriage to Edward and her family. Darlene will be remembered for her devotion to family, her strength through life's challenges, and the love she shared with those closest to her. Her memory will continue to live on in the lives of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and all who knew and loved her.

The family extends its gratitude to the staff and hospice teams at Avera Sacred Heart Hospital, Avera Hospice, Majestic Bluffs Assisted Living, and Angelhaus Assisted Living in Yankton, South Dakota, for their compassionate care and support.