Former Marin resident Michele Callan owned Shark’s Deli downtown

Michele Clark Callan, who owned and operated Shark’s Deli with her husband, Larry, for 13 years, died Oct. 24 at a Petaluma nursing home, where she had been under care since suffering a stroke last year. She was 81.

The Callans first came to Tiburon to operate Tiburon Deli in a Tiburon Boulevard-facing space owned by The Lodge at Tiburon. A few years later, The Lodge decided to convert the space to a conference room, so the couple moved the deli to the former Mobil station space at Tiburon Boulevard and Beach Road and called it Shark’s Deli.

The shop was a family operation, with the Callans’ daughter Kim also often working there. It was popular with residents and employees of local businesses alike. Mrs. Callan closed the deli in 2014, six months after Larry’s death.

The space has sat vacant ever since, though the Planning Commission earlier this year approved a use permit to convert the building into a 138-seat restaurant. However, an operator has not yet been announced

Mrs. Callan was born Feb. 11, 1940, in San Francisco to Harry and Elizabeth Clark. She attended Mercy High School and San Francisco State University. She married Larry in 1960, and the couple moved to San Rafael the same year.

She was highly involved in the family’s businesses, which in addition to Shark’s Deli included James L. Callan & Sons Jewelers and LJ’s Deli, both in San Rafael.

Mrs. Callan is survived by her children, Karen Hegarty of Petaluma, Kim Callan of San Rafael and L.J. Callan of Petaluma; her sister, Eileen McHale of Tiburon; six grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. A grandson, Brett J. Callan, predeceased her.

A celebration of her life will be held at a later date.