John T. Callahan

John T. Callahan of Galena, IL passed away on Wednesday, November 3, 2026, with his daughter Cathy by his side as always. A funeral service will be held at 6 PM on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, at the Furlong Funeral Chapel in Galena, where friends may call after 4 PM until the time of the service. A committal service will be held at 11 AM on Thursday, November 12, 2026 in St. Michael’s Catholic Cemetery in Galena. John was born in Cuba City, WI on July 21, 1941, to Frank and Angela (Bertling) Callahan. He was raised on the family farm and attended Rock College until 4th grade, St. Michaels in Galena 4-8 grades and graduated from St. Paul’s Catholic school in Worthington, IA. He married Sandra K. Johnson on November 11, 1961, at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Galena. He always said that he knew right after their first date, seeing Breakfast at Tiffany’s that she was the one. Just one month after their first date, John asked her to marry him. Their wedding was one that was the talk of the town and quite a party! They celebrated 54 years of marriage before Sandra passed in 2016. They loved to travel and had made it to 49 states. They had planned to visit Hawaii to complete the 50, but never got to go because Sandra became ill. He worked at several lumber yards, including Bly lumber Co. (Foreman) and Marquart Millwork Co. (Manager). In 1973 he went to work at John Deere, in the foundry. When he was laid off, he got hired by Tri State Travel as a driver. He always said that it was the best education that he ever got because he got to experience and learn about so many great places and meet so many interesting and fun people. He finished his career as a school bus driver for Galena Unified where he drove for 20 years. He left an impact on his students so great the Gazette wrote an article about the joy he brought to his students’ lives? John was a very good and kind man that always put his family first. When his daughters Cathy and Tracy were growing up, he and Sandra would take them on a yearly vacation to have fun and learn something interesting. His girls and Sandra were everything to him. John loved his 4 grandchildren dearly and took every opportunity to spend time with them, including every school break and family event he could. When they were all old enough, he took them all to Disney World and Kennedy Space Center. What a wonderful time together that was. As time went on, he loved talking to the grandkids on the phone and hearing about their lives and giving Grandpa John advice. He took several trips to AZ and CA to spend holidays with his great grandchildren and make memories with them. John had a great sense of humor and could strike up a conversation with anyone. He enjoyed having coffee with his friends at McDonald’s any given day, watching westerns, or sitting outside with his dog on his lap. He loved a good steak and baked potato with apple pie and ice cream for dessert. He was most comfortable in a pair of blue jeans, a plaid shirt and always western boots. He enjoyed his phone calls from old friends and relatives that he spent time with over the years.  He is survived by his daughters, Cathy Callahan of Galena and Tracy Callahan of Rochester MN, 4 grandchildren, Christopher (Dawn) Hoover, Aaron (Madison) Hoover, Callie-Ann (Christian) Hoover and Masie (Ian) Ackman, 5 great grandchildren, Abram, Lowell, Adley, Weston, and Mateo. John was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, two brothers, Francis and Jim, and his wife’s parents, Harvey and Lucy Johnson. The family would like to thank Hospice of Dubuque, the wonderful staff of Stonehill Memory Care of Dubuque with special thanks to Felishia Ruden, Rachael Rhomberg, and Narda McKeithan. A very special thank you to Kris Murdoch for her weekly visits to John, Dale Peck and Jim Irwin for their visits and just checking in.