James Peter Calhoun Born in Dover, NJ on February 24, 1937 and died at home in Athens, PA on July 14, 2026 at the age of 89. Dad was a fifth generation descendent of Peter Calhoun, a native of Scotland, born in the 1700’s who immigrated to the United States and settled in the Catskill region of NY State. Dad was the middle and last surviving child of George Oliver Calhoun and Mabel Eddy (Coley) Calhoun. He had two younger brothers, George and David as well as an older brother, Robert. His eldest sibling was his sister Kate (Calhoun) Lewis. What follows is the imperfect recollections of Jim and Mark Calhoun, the surviving children of our dad and mom, Madelyn (Banke) Calhoun who died in 2007 when she was just 69 years old. Our sister Rachel, died in 2005 at the age of 24.

                                                                                                   A Brief History 

Dad got a very well-paying factory job soon out of high school at “Hercules”, a powder company which made diff erent types of explosives, mostly for construction and ammunition. With some of his extra money I remember him saying he was proud to be able to buy one of the fi rst black and white TV’s in the neighborhood and told how he and his mother would stay up late and watch it together except there weren’t many shows on back then and sometimes they had to settle for wrestling or nothing at all. During this time he enjoyed playing sports especially basketball and baseball and some years later went on to coach, manage and umpire many Babe Ruth League teams and games. It is reported by reliable sources that he first met our mother at a barbeque hosted by mutual family acquaintances and a friend of his older brother who lived down the road. Shortly after this picnic Dad was drafted into the Army in 1960 and spent the next 2 years mostly in Fort Sill Oklahoma before he returned and married mom in 1963. 

Dad’s life during these early years of marriage was largely occupied by his secular job at Hercules and an increasingly time-consuming commute to and from work. He told me much later that he left for work before we got up and by the time he got home we would already be put to bed. He only saw us on weekends. Limited vacation days were often spent hunting and fi shing with his friends in Vermont, to the great displeasure of our mother. However, there came a time when I was just starting school that Dad was introduced to an intriguing and new perspective on life. His sister, Kate, introduced him to a subject by subject study of the Bible. He came to the conclusion he was putting value on the wrong things, that life was running him not that he was running his own life. He made the determination that his secular job, excessive recreation and pleasurable vices were going to end but he realized to make that happen he had to change. If he had any chance to live a life that God would approve he wanted a fresh start in a new place. 

So in 1972 Dad bought a small farm in Athens PA. For the next 54 years he lived on his property until his death just a few days ago. He chose the area largely because of the happy memories he had as a child, spending summers at his uncle's farm in Newark Valley just North of Owego, NY. During this time he intensifi ed his eff ort in Bible study and became baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1973. No more factory work, stressful commutes, or long periods away from his family. He was going to make a living selling organic vegetables and eggs on his own farm with his wife and sons at his side. After all, he understood God’s original purpose for mankind was to care for the Garden of Eden and eventually expand the paradise earth wide. Things went fairly well until the oil crisis hit the United States and he couldn’t aff ord to heat the old farmhouse we lived in. Out of desperation he bought a woodstove and was so pleased that it saved our family from freezing that he called the manufacturer and started selling them himself out of the barn. Who would have known that for the next half century Dad would pretty much carry on in that same pattern of living? He made sure our whole family attended the weekly Bible meetings at the Kingdom Hall, so that all of us had the same choice; to decide for ourselves what really is the best life possible. He enthusiastically shared his insight and perspective on the Bible with everyone that would give him the opportunity. Both my brother and I remember the shiny new Bibles and beautifully illustrated books explaining the value of the Bible, which he placed strategically throughout the shop on every fl at surface. It would capture the attention of young and old alike. Many Bible discussions took place in the showroom of the new shop as well as in the home he built in 1990 to replace the old farmhouse and barn which remained just a stone’s throw away on the same property. Over the years, literally hundreds of Bibles and books were given as gifts from our dad to the many who came looking for an alternative way to stay warm in the winter, as well as those who were eager to enjoy the tomatoes and other delicious produce from our organic garden in the summer. 

By this time in dad’s life both sons were married with families of their own but life had given our dad and mom one more significant surprise 10 years earlier. That turned out to be our sister, Rachel, who got the benefi t of the beautiful new bedroom with closets and a built in work area and desk to study for school in the new home/shop. Years kept counting along as will happen and time seemed to move ever persistently into the future but not always as we wished. As I mentioned earlier, both our sister and our mother would pass away long before our dad began to really feel his age. But feel it he did, especially lately in his eighties. He would tell you himself, if he thought he would have lived this long he would have made better preparation for old age. 

We all have managed with the help of dozens of care-givers and aides but especially with the help during the past 3 ½ years from our cousin, Cher Lewis, the daughter of Dad’s sister Kate, who happens to share Dad’s faith and trust in God. After taking care of her own parents for years before they died, she agreed to move to Pennsylvania and stay with Dad until his own death. So here we are at the end of almost 90 years and upon serious refl ection, my brother and I would agree with our father. He chose the best life possible!