William O'Callaghan

MENTOR -- William Goreham "Corky" O'Callaghan, Jr. passed away suddenly on March 28, 2022 at his home in Mentor, Ohio. He was a native of West Milton, Ohio. William was born on April 21, 1945 in Dayton, Ohio to the late William Goreham O'Callaghan, Sr. and Mary Ellen (Dagg) O'Callaghan. He graduated from Milton-Union High School in 1963 and went on to Ohio University, where he earned a degree in journalism. He taught in the Milton-Union Schools for a year or two. He worked at Bell Publicom and Hobart Manufacturing before setting up his own public relations company. He worked on campaign issues with political candidates and with schools to help pass levies by promoting community involvement. The last 25 years of his life he worked with educational leaders to help them engage the community in building public support for their schools. He founded the Mohican Institute as a think tank for Ohio's school superintendents. He wrote several books that encouraged communities to reengage with and support their schools. He felt that members of a community have a civic responsibility to engage with their schools. He believed that public education is one of the foundations of our democracy.

William is survived by his wife, Kate; sons Ryan (Nova) and Sean O'Callaghan; grandchildren McKenna, Kailey, Josh, and Emily; and brother Mike (Linda) O'Callaghan. He will be missed by many family members, friends, and business associates.

Services will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, April 23, 2022 at Hale-Sarver Family Funeral Home, 284 N. Miami St, West Milton, with burial following at Riverside Cemetery, West Milton. Memorial contributions may be made in lieu of flowers to the Milton-Union Education Foundation, 7610 Milton-Potsdam Rd, West Milton, OH 45383. Messages of sympathy may be left for the family at www.hale-sarver.com.