John Charles Callahan

John Charles Callahan, 83, died peacefully on May 27, 2026, after a long illness. Born in Boston on September 17, 1942, to Charles and Anne L. (McCormack) Callahan, John spent most of his life in Merrimack, Nashua, and Hollis, NH, where he lived with boundless energy, an open hand, and a joke always at the ready.

A devoted husband, John married Carole Anne Doyle on February 20, 1965, and the two celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in 2025. He was predeceased by his beloved Carole on August 17, 2025, and by his brothers James and Charles. He is survived by his sister, Nancy (Callahan) Ray; his three children, Jon, Cathleen Lareau, and Christine Blonda; five grandchildren, Bridget, Aidan, and Tyler Lareau, and Gavin and Sydney Blonda; and two step-grandsons, Quinn and Patrick Humlicek.

After graduating from Merrimack High School in 1960, John served as a U.S. Army engineer along the DMZ in Korea. He went on to study at the University of Maryland, Northeastern, and MIT Sloan and built a career at Sanders Associates, Sylvania Electric, and Frequency Sources before founding DBM Technical Sales, supplying the U.S. military with microwave radar components.

John took early retirement not to rest, but to give. He chaired the boards of the YMCA of Nashua and Home Health & Hospice Care in Merrimack, led the Transforming Beaver Brook Campaign in Hollis, and served for many years as president of the New England Microwave Association, pouring the same drive that built his career into building up the communities around him. He brought the same enthusiasm to a boardroom that he brought to everything else in life, and usually the same sense of humor.

Outside of his community work, John and Carole were passionate skiers, raising their family on the slopes of Cannon Mountain before joining the Flying Fifties ski club at Loon Mountain. John’s love of skiing never dimmed, and during the 2018-19 season he logged more than 100 days on the mountains. Off the slopes, he was forever gathering people together, running a tennis group, a golf group, a lunch bunch, and a motorcycle crew, and throwing open his home for the holidays, often hosting 30 or more friends and family for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and even larger gatherings for the Fourth of July.

John had a gift for making people feel welcome, making them laugh, and making sure no one was left out. He didn’t just make the world a better place. He made it more fun.

There will be a service at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, 708 Milford Rd, Merrimack, NH, on Tuesday, June 2, at 10:00 AM. All are welcome to join a reception with refreshments and food in the adjoining activities room immediately following the service.

An Irish wake and celebration of life will be held at Fulchino Vineyard, 187 Pine Hill Road, in Hollis NH, on Sunday, June 14 at 12:00 PM. All are welcome. In lieu of flowers, donations in John’s memory may be made to Transforming Beaver Brook benefiting the Beaver Brook Association in Hollis, NH. https://www.beaverbrook.org/transforming-beaver-brook-campaign/