David J. Callaway

David Jerome Callaway, age 72, passed away peacefully on Aug. 5, 2022, in El Dorado, Kan., with his wife, Jennifer, by his side, after a 14-year battle with a brain tumor.

Dave was born in Beatrice, Neb., on Feb. 1, 1950, to parents William R. and Lucille Callaway. The Callaway family moved to El Dorado in 1953. Dave graduated in 1968 from El Dorado High School, where he played four years of basketball. He went on to Butler County Community College, where he continued his basketball career and became a lifelong Grizzlies fan. After some time at the University of Kansas, Dave graduated from Emporia State University in 1972 with a degree in business. He married Jennifer Main in 1977.

Dave spent his entire professional career in the insurance business. In December 1981, Dave and Bill Douglass started Callaway Douglass and Associates, an independent insurance agency. The agency merged with Wichita agency Dulaney, Johnston & Priest Insurance in 1997, and Dave served as the company’s president for three years. Dave retired from insurance in 2004 after decades of working tirelessly to take care of his thousands of valued customers.

After retirement, Dave turned his attention to his side business, which involved real estate, property management and a storage facility. Dave loved his hometown of El Dorado and found joy in investing in it through contributions in business, real estate and civic organizations.

Throughout his life, some of Dave’s favorite things were competing in recreational softball and basketball, cheering on the Kansas Jayhawks, going on drives with friends, playing the “numbers game” to see who would pick up the lunch tab, organizing last-second Christmas Eve shopping sprees, mentoring and supporting young business people, vacationing with family and friends, and attending mass every Sunday.

After Dave was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2008, he maintained a positive attitude despite the many challenges that followed, including a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis. After brain surgery, as Dave was rolled out of the post-op room, he said, “Dave:1; tumor: 0.” The family is grateful for the 14 years Dave spent on earth after the surgery.

Dave was preceded in death by his mother, Lucille Zahm Callaway. He is survived by his wife, Jennifer; his daughters Kristin (Michael) Bogner and Kelsey (Jeremy) Sundgren; his father, William R. Callaway; his brother Michael (Marsha) Callaway; brother Steven (Joe Parrish) Callaway; sister Becky Callaway; grandchildren Ruby, Violet, Sylvie, Marigold and Dashiell; step-grandchildren Afton and Maddox; and nephew Evan (Elyse) Callaway.

A funeral service celebrating Dave’s life will take place at 10 a.m. on Aug. 12 at St. John’s Catholic Church in El Dorado. A visitation will take place from 5-7 p.m. on Aug. 11 at the church, and a vigil service will follow the visitation. Memorials have been established with Susan B. Allen Memorial Hospital Cancer Center and St. John’s Catholic Church in El Dorado.

The family would like to extend a special thank you to all the attentive and loving caregiver's who made Dave's life so much easier.

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