Obituary of Joseph Callaghan

No visitation will be held Joseph M. (Jim) Callaghan Jim Callaghan was born Joseph Molnar Callaghan on August 26, 1923 in Los Angeles, California to Irish parents John M. and Mary (Slattery) Callaghan. Four years later his sister Madelein Patricia joined the family. At a young age he was called “Sunny Jim” because of his pleasant disposition. Thereafter everyone knew him as “Jim”. They grew up in Redondo Beach, California. Early in life Jim and Pat lost their father. Their mother taught school to support the family. Times were hard and Jim never complained. His mother remarried Thomas F. Maher, when Jim was a teenager. As a young man he was especially fond of jazz music and the “Big Bands”. He and friends enjoyed many outings to hear the bands play around Southern California, especially Catalina. He sustained that love of jazz throughout his life. After graduation from high school, Jim enlisted in the US Army Air Corps. He served from 1942-1946 in various US posts and Cuba and achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant. Right after discharge his mother made sure he enrolled in USC. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration (Accounting) in 1949. He was always proud to be a Trojan and was an ardent fan, except when they played the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. In his professional life, Jim initially worked for Price Waterhouse in Los Angeles. He became a CPA in 1952. He worked as Controller for Air Logistics in Pasadena. Jim obtained a position with US Borax and Chemical Corp. in 1960 and remained there until retirement in 1987. Perhaps his most adventurous assignment was in the mine at Boron during an extended strike. He enjoyed the change of pace. During his career at US Borax he made many interesting trips – to potash mines in Carlsbad, NM; Monterey, Mexico; and Regina, Saskatchewan; to molybdenum explorations in Alaska. He spent the final several years at US Borax on assignment in Bryn Mawr, PA. and in Hagerstown, MD. He retired in 1987. Jim married Jacqueline Ann Gibney in 1950. She also was an accountant. They had three children, Maureen, Peggy and Kevin. They raised their family in Playa Del Rey, Covina, Los Angeles and Irvine, California. Nothing was more important to Jim than his family. Jim and Jacque had a wonderful circle of friends during the years they were raising their family. They made many travels with their children, often in their travel trailer. These included numerous trips to the beaches of California, several trips to Mexico, and national and state parks in the West. Jim and Jacque were proud of the achievements of all their children as they grew. They welcomed Peggy’s husband John Papathakis and Maureen’s husband Allen Miller into the family. They especially enjoyed their grandchildren Sean, Eric and Caitlin Papathakis and Brendan, Patrick and Brigit Miller. Almost without fail, the entire family joined at Christmas and in the summer at Lake Tahoe. They took the entire family to Costa Rica in celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary. In retirement, Jim and Jacque traveled all over the world. Jim was especially proud that they had been to all seven continents. They made several visits to family in Ireland. Jim was especially pleased to visit the grave of his maternal grandfather in Capetown, South Africa. After they moved to the Northwest, they especially enjoyed stays in Costa Rica for a few weeks in winter. Jim and Jacque moved to Greenview Village in Port Ludlow in 1994 – attracted by the proximity to daughter Maureen and the promise of less than 20 inches of rain and 200 days of sunshine a year. Jim enjoyed the watching the golfers on the Tides golf course from their living room and living in a beautiful rural community. They quickly made friends and found many fun and interesting spots in Jefferson County. Jim and his wife moved to an assisted living community in Tacoma in 2004. In 2006 they relocated to Olympia. Jim endured a variety of chronic illness, and endured them with dignity and courage, and without complaint. He died happy and content with his life. Jim was a gracious gentleman with a sunny disposition, generous heart and winning smile. He was liked by everyone that met him. He was kind, fun-loving and witty. He lived his strong Catholic faith by example. He was proud of his Irish heritage and American upbringing. There never was a man who was more honest. He was thoughtful, smart and helpful, and always with a hint of humor. He loved his family dearly. Nothing made him happier than being with his family on some adventure – and picking up the tab. Funeral Mass will be at St. Michael Catholic Church in Olympia at noon on Friday, December 22, 2006. Contributions in his memory can be made to Catholic Relief Services. P.O. Box 17090 Baltimore, Maryland 21203-7090. On the Occasion of the Funeral of Jim Callaghan – December 22, 2006 On behalf of my mother, Jacque, my sister Peggy and my brother Kevin, we thank you for joining us today to honor my Dad and to celebrate his life. It gives us great comfort to know that not only do we pray for him here at this funeral Mass, but that Mass is being offered for him on three continents this day. As a man who loved to travel and who had a great love of life, I am sure he is pleased. As a family we want to share with you, some of our most precious memories of him. Being of Irish heritage, brevity of word is not in our nature. But we tried. Jacque Because of her illness, my mother is no longer able to share with us her thoughts and feelings about her husband of 56 years. I believe she would say what a wonderful husband and father he was. She would have said how well-suited they were, how much fun they enjoyed during their lives together, and how proud they both are of their children and their grandchildren. Patrick Grandpa was one of the most generous people I know. I remember about three years ago he offered to take me to the NCAA tournament first and second rounds in Seattle. He got me out of school and we went up on Thursday and essentially spent the entire weekend sharing both our loves of basketball together. I cherished that time greatly and bonded with him more than ever on that weekend when it was just us. I remember him constantly offering to buy me food and other souvenirs throughout the weekend. Grandpa was constantly thinking of others and would always make them feel wanted and happy. Caitlin One of my favorite memories with grandpa was when Eric, Sean and I flew down to Irvine. I loved going to visit them. We always had fun things to do, like going to the lagoon and to the lake to see the catfish. One summer, like always, we were going to go to Disney Land. But this year, we were going to go on my birthday. I remember we got up really early and waited in the long lines to get in. I, of course, wanted to go on the Dumbo ride endlessly and Grandpa was always there next to me. When Sean and Eric took me on the Pirates ride I was so scared and Grandpa was there to comfort and dry my tears. Even though they were exhausted Grandma and Grandpa stayed up with us watching the fireworks. Grandpa was so kind and thoughtful. He did so much for all of us, and he will always be with us. Brendan One of the great things about grandpa were his diverse interests. I remember how he told me all about the geological studies involved in US Borax’s mining operations. I found it amazing that he knew so much about his employer’s field research despite being employed as an accountant. Much of this diversity of interests was fostered by the many wonderful trips (at least one to every continent) he took with Jaque. His wealth of knowledge will be missed. Eric During the summers when grandma and grandpa lived in Southern California, I would always take a trip down to stay with them for a couple of weeks. I remember that grandpa would always find a sporting event to take me to. Often it was a baseball game but if the Angels and Dodgers were out of town he would look for something else, like minor league basketball or even roller hockey. It was apparent that he started planning our outings far in advance since we always had great seats. For every baseball game we went to he would keep a scorecard for me take home after as well as buy me a hat for whichever team we were cheering for. Grandpa would always make sure that I was happy, making sure I wasn’t hungry or thirsty. I will always remember what great times I had with him. Sean Grandpa was a very honest person. During my annual trip to visit Grandma and Grandpa, Grandpa took me out for breakfast. After the meal, Grandpa paid the bill and we left heading back toward Port Ludlow. After driving for 10 minutes Grandpa realized that he had under paid the bill by 10 dollars. Grandpa, being very honest, turned the car around and drove back to the restaurant to pay the outstanding tab. Grandpa was a very honest man and a great role model for the grand kids. John Jim was a person that was always thinking about other people before himself making sure that they were comfortable and that everyone had all that they needed to make their life enjoyable. For instances, on our annual vacation trips to Lake Tahoe and Sun River, Oregon, he would pay for the rental of the cabins, take care of all our side trips like floating down the Truckee River, going ice skating and swimming at Squaw Valley, taking care of our canoe rides on the Oregon River and paying for all the meals and drinks associated with this activities. He would never let anyone pay for anything. He was such a generous person. Jim would also like to play 21 in Tahoe while we were there. Quite often Jim, Kevin and I would make our way over to one of the Casinos to participate in the weekly 21 tournament. Even though we might not have done very well, except Kevin on occasion, we had a wonderful time. Anytime I see one of these 21 tournaments taking place I think about the wonderful time I experienced with Jim. Allen One of my favorite memories will always be the delight on your face, as we waited on Raffa’s boat in the mangroves off Quepos while the capuchin monkeys came out of the tropical forest in response to the call of El Padre de los Monos. I remember your knowing smile as we all fed the capuchins bananas after they boarded the boat. You had seen this all before on your prior trips and had wanted to share the experience with your family. Going to Costa Rica was a perfect way to celebrate your 50th wedding anniversary, and Y2K, with your family, and we could all feel sorry for the people who stayed home, hunkered down, thinking the world was going to end. Thanks for defying the naysayers and making those memories possible. You were a great and generous father-in-law. Kevin I remember the Backpacking adventures I had with dad, especially when we went to the Bridger wilderness, for 2 weeks with a group of Mormons, Dads friends from work. We only brought a tube tent, open at both ends. Every morning, we had icicles hanging above our heads. We had Trout for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Even being with a bunch of Mormons, we had “Happy Hour” each night before dinner. It was a tough trip, but it was a great adventure. Peggy My dad’s sense of adventure and exploring the world near and far is a gift I will always carry. From summer camping in the California State beach camp sites where the children would stay with the moms while the dads commuted to work, to Guadalajara, Mazatlan and Mexico City at Christmas time, to visiting me in South Africa and exploring Cape Town to find the childhood home of my dad’s mother and gravesite of his grandfather with him. He was a great caretaker of our family – from making sure the car tank was full of gas when I came home from college to helping plan John’s and my anniversary trips to the Caribbean or Ireland to helping me get ready for moving to South Africa. He was always supportive of his children and grand children, no matter what our endeavor. I will always remember when I was sharing with him my worries of starting graduate school and wondering if I would be successful and able to finish, my dad told me, “It doesn’t matter if you make it through, it is all worth it.” My dad made sure that everything we did in life was “worth it”. Maureen I had the privilege of being my Dad’s escort during the final years of his life journey. As my mother faded, we developed a new relationship. The recent journey was arduous for us both. My Dad faced the indignities of failing health and increasing dependence on others with dignity and grace. He did whatever was asked of him as best he could, and was always kind and respectful to those who assisted him. He did not complain and always had hope. Everyone who worked with him came to love him. My Dad and I saw the inside of many hospitals during the last few years – including the unexpected hospital stay in Ireland last year. I learned more about being on the receiving side of health care than I ever wanted during this time. I will forever be a better physician and a better person, thanks to my Dad. Peggy, Kevin and I are lucky and blessed to be the children of Jim Callaghan. Please leave your memories and condolences for the family by clicking on "View Guestbook" below