Colleen Callahan
Encyclopedia
Colleen Callahan is an agribusiness
news reporter and Illinois Director of USDA Rural Development. She was the Democratic
nominee for Illinois' 18th congressional district
in 2008.
Callahan grew up on a farm near Milford, Illinois
and graduated as salutatorian
from Milford Township High School in May 1969. After graduating from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
in 1973, she moved to Peoria
to work for WMBD (AM)
until 2005. She was also the agribusiness reporter for WMBD-TV
and WCIA from 1974 to 1997.
In 2003, she went on a study trip to Afghanistan
and Iraq
, paid for at her own expense, at the invitation of the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. She started her own business, Colleen Callahan Communications, in 2003. At the beginning of 2003, she changed employers from WMBD in Peoria to WGFA (AM)
in Watseka, Illinois
; she has been agribusiness director at both stations.
In 2008, she ran for U.S. Representative for Illinois' 18th congressional district
, a seat open by the retirement of Ray LaHood
. She won the Democratic nomination, but lost the November 4 general election to Republican
Aaron Schock
, 59% to 38%, with 3% going to Sheldon Schafer.
On , Callahan began work as United States Department of Agriculture
Illinois State Director of Rural Development.
Callahan and her husband Dick Burns live on a farm near Kickapoo, Illinois, between Brimfield, Illinois
and Peoria, where they raise purebred
Angus cattle
. They have a grown daughter who is a practicing attorney in Chicago.
of many local organizations, including:
She has also served as a member of the St. Francis Medical Center Women's Health Services Public Relations Committee, and is a member of the National Association of Women Business Owners
. Callahan has been heavily involved in the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB), was its first female president, and was chairman of the NAFB Ethics Committee. She has also been active in local Catholic school
s, serving on the education board at St. Mary's grade school in Kickapoo and assisting Peoria Notre Dame High School
.
Her family has long been active in Illinois politics. Her father, Fran Callahan, was Iroquois County
Democratic Chair. Her grandfather, Joe Callahan, was an Illinois State Representative
. Her uncle, Gene Callahan, was the Administrative Assistant and Press Secretary
for Lieutenant Governor
Paul Simon
(before he became a United States Senator) and Chief of Staff
for U.S. Senator Alan Dixon.
Agribusiness
In agriculture, agribusiness is a generic term for the various businesses involved in food production, including farming and contract farming, seed supply, agrichemicals, farm machinery, wholesale and distribution, processing, marketing, and retail sales....
news reporter and Illinois Director of USDA Rural Development. She was the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
nominee for Illinois' 18th congressional district
Illinois' 18th congressional district
The 18th Congressional District of Illinois covers central and western Illinois, including the cities of Jacksonville, Peoria, and Springfield. It is represented by Aaron Schock.-Voting:-2008:...
in 2008.
Callahan grew up on a farm near Milford, Illinois
Milford, Illinois
Milford is a village in Milford Township, Iroquois County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,369 at the 2000 census, and 1,257 in 2009...
and graduated as salutatorian
Salutatorian
Salutatorian is an academic title given, in the United States and Canada, to the second highest graduate of the entire graduating class of a specific discipline. Only the valedictorian is ranked higher. This honor is traditionally based on grade point average and number of credits taken, but...
from Milford Township High School in May 1969. After graduating from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
in 1973, she moved to Peoria
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
to work for WMBD (AM)
WMBD (AM)
WMBD is the oldest radio station in Peoria, Illinois. It broadcasts on 1470 kHz with 5000 watts day and night, with a 2-tower pattern during the day and a 4-tower pattern at night.The station started broadcasting in 1927...
until 2005. She was also the agribusiness reporter for WMBD-TV
WMBD-TV
WMBD-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for Central Illinois licensed to Peoria. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 30 from a transmitter on Pinecrest Drive in Groveland Township's East Peoria section. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 7 and in...
and WCIA from 1974 to 1997.
In 2003, she went on a study trip to Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, paid for at her own expense, at the invitation of the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. She started her own business, Colleen Callahan Communications, in 2003. At the beginning of 2003, she changed employers from WMBD in Peoria to WGFA (AM)
WGFA (AM)
WGFA is a News/Talk formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Watseka, Illinois, serving Watseka and Eastern Iroquois County, Illinois and Western Benton Southern Newton counties in Indiana. WGFA is owned and operated by Iroquois County Broadcasting Company....
in Watseka, Illinois
Watseka, Illinois
Watseka is a city in and the county seat of Iroquois County, Illinois, United States. It is located approximately west of the Illinois-Indiana state line on U.S...
; she has been agribusiness director at both stations.
In 2008, she ran for U.S. Representative for Illinois' 18th congressional district
Illinois' 18th congressional district
The 18th Congressional District of Illinois covers central and western Illinois, including the cities of Jacksonville, Peoria, and Springfield. It is represented by Aaron Schock.-Voting:-2008:...
, a seat open by the retirement of Ray LaHood
Ray LaHood
Raymond H. "Ray" LaHood is a Republican politician from Illinois who is currently the United States Secretary of Transportation, having served since 2009. Previously, he represented the Illinois's 18th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for seven terms .-Early life and...
. She won the Democratic nomination, but lost the November 4 general election to Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Aaron Schock
Aaron Schock
Aaron Schock is the United States Representative for , serving since 2009. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district is based in Peoria and includes part of Springfield. At the age of , Schock is currently the youngest U.S. representative and the first member of the U.S. Congress born...
, 59% to 38%, with 3% going to Sheldon Schafer.
On , Callahan began work as United States Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
Illinois State Director of Rural Development.
Callahan and her husband Dick Burns live on a farm near Kickapoo, Illinois, between Brimfield, Illinois
Brimfield, Illinois
Brimfield is a village in Peoria County, Illinois, United States.The population was 933 at the 2000 census. Brimfield is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
and Peoria, where they raise purebred
Purebred
Purebreds, also called purebreeds, are cultivated varieties or cultivars of an animal species, achieved through the process of selective breeding...
Angus cattle
Angus cattle
Angus cattle are a breed of cattle much used in beef production. They were developed from cattle native to the counties of Aberdeenshire and Angus in Scotland, and are known as Aberdeen Angus in most parts of the world....
. They have a grown daughter who is a practicing attorney in Chicago.
Civic participation
Callahan has served on the boardsBoard of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
of many local organizations, including:
- Peoria YWCAYWCAThe YWCA USA is the United States branch of a women's membership movement that strives to create opportunities for women's growth, leadership and power in order to attain a common vision—to eliminate racism and empower women. The YWCA is a non-profit organization, the first of which was founded in...
- Nature Conservancy Great Rivers Regional Board
- Youth for a Cause
- The Children's Home in Peoria
- University of Illinois ACESUIUC College of Agriculture, Consumer, and Environmental SciencesThe University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's College of Agriculture, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences is part of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is considered by some to be the top school of agriculture-related sciences in the world...
Alumni Association (President) - Morton Community Bank
She has also served as a member of the St. Francis Medical Center Women's Health Services Public Relations Committee, and is a member of the National Association of Women Business Owners
National Association of Women Business Owners
The National Association of Women Business Owners is an organization in the United States founded in 1975 that has the purpose of networking the approximately 10.6 million women-owned businesses so as to provide mutual support, share resources, and provide a single voice to help shape economic and...
. Callahan has been heavily involved in the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB), was its first female president, and was chairman of the NAFB Ethics Committee. She has also been active in local Catholic school
Catholic school
Catholic schools are maintained parochial schools or education ministries of the Catholic Church. the Church operates the world's largest non-governmental school system...
s, serving on the education board at St. Mary's grade school in Kickapoo and assisting Peoria Notre Dame High School
Peoria Notre Dame High School
Peoria Notre Dame High School is a Catholic parochial high school in Peoria, Illinois. It is the largest parochial school in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria with approximately 815 students and has a college preparatory curriculum. According to the school, more than 99% of students graduating...
.
Her family has long been active in Illinois politics. Her father, Fran Callahan, was Iroquois County
Iroquois County, Illinois
Iroquois County is a county located in the northeast part of the U.S. state of Illinois along the border with Indiana. It is the third largest county in the state in terms of area, covering over . According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 29,718, which is a decrease of 5.2% from 31,334...
Democratic Chair. Her grandfather, Joe Callahan, was an Illinois State Representative
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The state House of Representatives is made of 118 representatives elected from...
. Her uncle, Gene Callahan, was the Administrative Assistant and Press Secretary
Press secretary
A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage....
for Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor or lieutenant-governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction, but is often the deputy or lieutenant to or ranking under a governor — a "second-in-command"...
Paul Simon
Paul Simon (politician)
Paul Martin Simon was an American politician from Illinois. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 1985 and United States Senate from 1985 to 1997. He was a member of the Democratic Party...
(before he became a United States Senator) and Chief of Staff
Chief of Staff
The title, chief of staff, identifies the leader of a complex organization, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a Principal Staff Officer , who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide to an important individual, such as a president.In general, a chief of...
for U.S. Senator Alan Dixon.
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois, 2008United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois, 2008The 2008 congressional elections in Illinois were held on November 4, 2008 to determine who would represent the state of Illinois in the United States House of Representatives, coinciding with the presidential and senatorial elections...
- Illinois' 18th congressional districtIllinois' 18th congressional districtThe 18th Congressional District of Illinois covers central and western Illinois, including the cities of Jacksonville, Peoria, and Springfield. It is represented by Aaron Schock.-Voting:-2008:...
External links
- Colleen Callahan for Congress — official campaign website
- Colleen Callahan's blog
- Colleen Callahan 08 on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- Colleen Callahan Communications — business website