Colton Callahan

Colton Michael Montano Callahan, born August 3rd, 1990, passed away on December 12th, 2024.

Colton graduated from Ball State University in 2013 with a bachelor's degree in Mathematical Sciences. He was a prolific chef, and spent time working at both Sunshine Cafe and Damask Cafe in Muncie, IN. During his time there , Damask Cafe won a Best Entree award in the local dining competition Taste of Muncie. Colton moved to Washington, DC later in 2013 and worked for Medstar Capitals Iceplex until 2024. He wore many hats while working at the ice rink, but he was best known for his charismatic demeanor and incredible smile serving as the front desk manager of the complex. He was the go-to for employees across all departments and mentored and supported countless youth and young colleagues. Colton wanted nothing more than to inspire confidence and foster growth for all those he met and led while serving as the manager. His impact was felt not only by his peers, but by the endless number of customers he met and the entire local hockey community.

So many people loved Colton, and he was a bright spot in the lives of everyone who knew him. His friends and family knew him as a thoughtful, enthusiastic, curious, and loving person. He chose to be unfailingly kind and affectionate, and supported his loved ones however he could. He had an exceptional ability to comfort and create the safest space for anyone he cared for. He was witty, empathetic, sincere, absolutely hysterically funny, and gave the best hugs. He made people's lives better simply by being part of them.

Colton was a true renaissance man and knew something interesting about everything. A curator of culture, he was particularly well-versed in art, music, math, and facts about bugs. When you talked to him about something-anything-he probably already knew more than you, but he still liked to listen to you say it. He wove brilliant connections between many different fields and topics of conversation, seamlessly taking your passion and integrating it with his. He loved puns and pop culture, and would recite entire sections of his favorite TV shows and YouTube videos from memory. He loved live music, crafting playlists, museums, and his local library. Above all, he loved learning about what other people liked, and he loved sharing things he liked with other people.

It was a privilege to love Colton, and a joy to care for him when he would allow it. In his last year of life, Colton spent time with friends and family, visited art museums, cooked and baked for his community, and got at least 5 new tattoos. He nurtured his enormous pothos plant named Claude, and shared his favorite music with his loved ones. An aspiring beekeeper, he loved bees and filled his home with bee-themed art and honeycombs. He was adding to his many talents by learning morse code and amateur radio, writing a novel, brewing his own sodas and seltzers, and exploring crochet. Colton was building a beautiful life, and his loved ones desperately wish there had been more time to share with him.

Colton leaves behind his mother Monique Matthews and father Donald Matthews, his brothers Sean Callahan and Aaron Callahan, and his sister Melissa Lincoln, as well as an enormous community of people who were blessed to have loved and been loved by him.

Multiple memorial events for Colton are being planned for 2025. A memorial service and celebration of life is being organized for the coming weeks in the Washington, DC area. In lieu of flowers, his loved ones ask that you consider a donation to one of several causes that were meaningful to Colton, such as the arts, mathematics education, beekeeping, or your local art museum. Meanwhile, please remember Colton by learning a fun fact, getting that tattoo, visiting your favorite museum, listening to music he introduced you to, sharing a meal with friends, asking a loved one what their favorite song is, or checking in on someone who is struggling.