Dan McLloyd Shultz, age 87, of Walla Walla, Washington, died on March 12, 2026. Dan was born in 1938 in Bradford, Penn., to Courtney Lyle Shultz and Alice Frances (Scott) Shultz. He was the oldest of five children. Dan’s parents were not musicians, but they were determined to give their children opportunities to study music. With his mother at the local music store, 10-year-old Dan was offered a choice between a cornet, a flute, and a clarinet. Certain he was choosing the shiny cornet, he got mixed up and said, “Clarinet!” When he arrived at his first lesson and was handed a clarinet, he was disappointed—until he began to play. Before long, he had taken to the instrument, and later, when he was given the chance to switch to the oboe, he fell in love with its sound and made it his own. An accomplished oboist, Dan studied with John Holmes of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Florian Mueller of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He completed a B.S. in music education at Atlantic Union College and an M.Mus. at Andrews University and enjoyed a long and respected career as a teacher, conductor, and leader in music education. He taught and directed bands at both the academy and college levels and served as department chair of the fine arts department at Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska, and the music department at Walla Walla College in Walla Walla, Washington. He also devoted many years to the Walla Walla Symphony Board, including serving as President from 1985 to 1988, and was primarily responsible for founding and leading the International Adventist Musicians Association from 1984 to 2019. While at Atlantic Union College, Dan met and married JoAn Bell in 1958. Over the years, they welcomed four children. As small children, some of our happiest memories are of sitting in gymnasiums in the front row on metal folding chairs while our dad conducted the band onstage—it seemed like he was dancing to the music. We were so proud to be his kids. After the concert, it always took forever to get home because it seemed like everyone wanted to talk with him, and he always made time. Years later, following a divorce, Dan met and married Carolyn Stevens in 1984, an English professor at Walla Walla College. From the start, we knew he had found his soulmate in Carolyn. They created and built a home together from brick and wood and filled it with love. Their home became a magnet for family and friends, sometimes serving as a port in the storm of life for loved ones. Our annual family reunions always included laughter-filled meals in their shady backyard. Dan loved history and was a meticulous researcher and prolific writer. After completing an extensively researched family history, The Twisted Tree, he wrote a history of music at Walla Walla College, A Great Tradition, and a centennial history of the Walla Walla Symphony, A Dream Fulfilled. He also authored the Adventist Musicians Biographical Resource, a major reference work containing biographies of more than 1,000 Adventist musicians—a work grounded in thousands of conversations and a deep respect for the stories of others. As a composer, Dan wrote five band works, including two selected as official Bicentennial activities in 1976. More than his many accomplishments, we remember him for how deeply he cared about those around him. Beginning in his twenties, he opened his home to family members who needed support and stability. When Dan and Carolyn sold their home in College Place in 2025, our family honored their life-changing generosity by creating a keepsake book filled with memories of how they both shaped and strengthened our lives. That same compassion extended to Dan’s professional world, where students and colleagues were encouraged and sustained by his steady friendship. Dan is preceded in death by his mother Alice, father Courtney, brother Louis, sister Dee, granddaughter Natalia Zubriski, and great-grandsons Jolan Eric Courtney Wilson and Marcus Madhukar Manuel. He is survived by his beloved wife Carolyn; sister Barbara Martin and Gary Martin, brother Larry Shultz; children Denise and Pete Hickerson, Karan Shultz, Rhonda Moravec, Jeff and Sylvia Shultz; grandchildren Christopher Schoolcraft, Melissa and Jeremy Smith, Sharif Ibrahim and Amy Streifel, Esam Ibrahim, Kristopher and Jackson Shultz, Emily and Patrick Daniel, Carina Shultz and Alex Manuel, Rosetta Shultz, Marc and Alyssa Case, Justine Hickerson, Jon and Meghan Hickerson; great grandchildren Amber-Lyn, Michael, Thorin, Olivia, Clara, Natalya, Niam, Nadiene, Emmett, Luann, Jonah, Noah; and a large and loving extended family of cousins, nieces, and nephews.