Joe O'Callaghan

JOE O'CALLAGHAN Tupelo - Joseph Walter "Joe" O'Callaghan, 85, died Sunday, January 12, 2014, at Sanctuary Hospice House after a brief illness. He was born February 17, 1928, to James P. and Lucy Francis O'Callaghan. He graduated from Tupelo High School in 1945, then attended Millsaps College and Mississippi State University. He was a veteran of the United States Marines Corp. He was employed by Delta Airlines in Memphis, Tennessee in various capacities in several different cities. He met his wife, Donna J. Doss of Wynne, Arkansas and they were married on May 15, 1955. They returned to Tupelo in 1956 to own and operate O'Callaghan's Dairy Bar and O'Callaghan's Drive Inn. He and his sister, Emma Rial, became partners of Rial Vending Service in 1962 where he worked until his retirement in 2000. He was a charter member of St. Luke United Methodist Church. He was a longtime member of the Tupelo Country Club, where he enjoyed playing golf and cards with his friends. A celebration of his life will be 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, January 15, 2014, at The Jefferson Street Chapel of W. E. Pegues with Rev. Duncan Clark officiating. Burial will be in Tupelo Memorial Gardens. Survivors include his wife, Donna Doss O'Callaghan of Tupelo; his four children, Diana O'Callaghan Mobley (Bill) of Oxford, Mary O'Callaghan Anderson (Gerald) of Tupelo, Bob O'Callaghan of Tupelo, Joe O'Callaghan, Jr. (Cindy) of Saltillo; grandchildren, Clinton Anderson, Elizabeth Anderson, Blake O'Callaghan, Emmie O'Callaghan, Hayden O'Callaghan, Caley O'Callaghan, Morgan O' Callaghan; great-grandchildren, Paisley Ayden O'Callaghan and Emma Olivia Anderson. He was preceded in death by his parents; his siblings, Elizabeth O'Callaghan, George F. O'Callaghan, James P. O'Callaghan, Jr., Edward O'Callaghan and Emma O'Callaghan Rial. Pallbearers will be Clinton Anderson, Blake O'Callaghan, Hayden O'Callaghan, Pete Poland, Steve Hester, Jerry Hollingsworth, Virgil Henry and Jim Diffie. Honorary Pallbearers will be Ralph "Duck" Holland and James Whatley. Visitation will be 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, January 14, 2014 at the funeral home and continued one hour prior to service time on Wednesday. In lieu of flowers, the family request memorials be made to Sanctuary Hospice House, PO Box 2177, Tupelo, MS 38803