Glen Robert Blackwood

Glen Blackwood, 62, passed away on Monday, December 29th, 2025 in Rockford, Michigan. Glen was born on March 2nd, 1963 to Nancy (Acton) Blackwood and Harold Blackwood in Springfield, Ohio, where he was raised. Growing up, he enjoyed many summers in Unionville, Pennsylvania, fly fishing in the spring creeks of Pine Creek Valley. He graduated from The Ohio State University, class of 1986, with a B.S. in Agriculture. He was also a graduate of the Missouri School of Auctioneering and would, in his life, donate his time and skills as an auctioneer to the many conservation organizations he supported. Moving to Michigan in search of trout and grouse, Glen began working at the Thornapple Orvis Shop, and would meet his wife Kathleen in 1989. Glen later worked at the Scott Fly Rod Company, before becoming owner of the Great Lakes Fly Fishing Company in Rockford, MI, where he and Kathleen began their family. Glen also had the opportunity to travel and film around the world for his television show, Fly Fishing with Glen Blackwood. As owner of the Great Lakes Fly Fishing Company, Glen taught many in West Michigan to fly fish and appreciate the sport. He was known to many as a great storyteller and was a member of the Watershed Club in northern Michigan on the Manistee River.

In 2020, he began working for the Ruffed Grouse Society, an organization he had long supported and that was close to his heart. Glen was most at home by a stream or in a field bird hunting or training with his field-bred English Springer and Cocker Spaniels. He especially looked forward to the start of fly fishing season in the spring and to the month of October, when he and his friends could devote themselves to their favorite outdoor pursuit of hunting grouse and woodcock.

All of his life, he loved the written word. When not in the field, he enjoyed reading classic and contemporary fly fishing and wingshooting literature as well as studying and appreciating sporting art. He was an avid writer, contributing articles and book reviews to Sporting Classics, Upland Almanac, Ruffed Grouse Society Covers Magazine, and other publications. Glen was a devoted conservationist and dedicated a significant portion of his time to volunteering with organizations he cared deeply about, including Trout Unlimited, the Ruffed Grouse Society, and the Pere Marquette Watershed Council, among others.

He is survived by his wife, Kathleen (Meehan) Blackwood; his daughter Megan (Reed) Westcott; his son, Ian Blackwood; and his sister, Ruth (Mike) Lee, lifelong boyhood friend and brother at heart, Chris Campbell, and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Nancy and Harold Blackwood. A private service will be scheduled for close friends and family.