San Luis Obispo’s fire chief passed away during a softball match at Santa Rosa Park on Aug. 18. John Callahan, 61, suffered a massive heart attack as he ran between first and second base while playing softball with the city league.
Callahan had been the city’s fire chief since 2005 and was scheduled to retire in November. Before coming to SLO, he had been a firefighter with the Los Angeles Fire Department for 32 years.
Services will be held for Callahan at the Reis Family Mortuary, 991 Nipomo St., between 4 and 7 p.m. on Aug. 26. A public candlelight vigil is scheduled for 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. and will begin at Fire Station One, 2160 Santa Barbara Ave. A procession that includes fire trucks from the SLO and Los Angeles Fire Departments starts at 9 a.m. on Aug. 27 from Reis Mortuary, progressing to the Performing Arts Center at Cal Poly. A memorial service at the PAC will run from 10 a.m. to noon.
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 2, 2010.