Thurston "Sonny" Callahan

Thurston “Sonny” Callahan, 92, of Fayetteville, passed away Sunday, February 4, 2024.

A memorial service will be held at 11:30 am on February 9, 2024 with Pastor Rob James officiating, following a 10:15 am visitation at First Baptist Church at 201 Anderson Street.

Thurston was born October 7, 1931, in Whiteville, N.C., the son of Neil Graham Callahan and Mattie Powers. He graduated from Whiteville High School in 1950 and from East Carolina University in 1954, where he played football for the Pirates.  He married Sara Lewis Jackson on December 20, 1953.  He served in Korea immediately following the Armistice as a Company Clerk 1955-1956 as a Specialist 4.

In 1966, Thurston opened a Fayetteville insurance agency with Newton Robertson and Elizabeth Ellis.  With partner Mark W. Rice, this business evolved into the Callahan & Rice Insurance Group and continues in the community to this day.  He also married Faye Nobles on November 10, 2001.

Thurston was preceded in death by wife, Sara Lewis Jackson, thirteen brothers and sisters, son-in-law David Ray Nimocks, III, and wife Faye Nobles.  He is survived by daughters, Jayne Lynne Callahan Nimocks of Fayetteville and Lee Callahan Hayden (David) of Raleigh; grandchildren, David Ray Nimocks, IV (Amanda) of Fayetteville, Joshua Graham Nimocks (Mary Frances) of Fayetteville, Joseph Paul Beck, Jr. (Jessica) of Lake Oswego, OR, Tyler Callahan Nimocks (Amanda) of Fayetteville, Sarah Whitney Beck of Raleigh, and Oliver Charles Callahan Beck (Adriana) of London, U.K.; and eight great-grandchildren.

A devoted husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, brother, brother-in-law, uncle, friend, mentor, coach, teacher, and child of God – Sonny was all of these things and lived a life of honor and humble elegance.  He was equally at home in a business meeting, a duck blind, a school classroom, a football field – or watching a sunset on a Carolina barrier island.  Traveling the roads of southeastern North Carolina with him meant experiencing a landscape of memories that stretched decades back into the Great Depression.  Going about daily life in Fayetteville with him always entailed countless greetings and meetings with friends young and old.

Outside of his insurance career, Sonny’s life was one of activity in the sports world - football, baseball, softball, golf – and the sportsmans’ world – duck hunting, bird hunting, and fishing.  He was a longtime member of Ducks Unlimited.

As he grew older, his physical restlessness was replaced by an unceasing concern and care for loved ones close at hand and far away.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Baptist Church, 201 Anderson St. Fayetteville, NC 28301.

Online condolences may be sent to http://www.jerniganwarren.com

Services provided by Jernigan-Warren Funeral Home, 545 Ramsey St., Fayetteville, NC 28301

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