John C. Calhoun

John was born on December 21, 1953 to Jesse Calhoun Jr. and Claudia Mae Griffith in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The family moved a great deal during his father’s military career, but during most of his father’s overseas deployments the family lived with his maternal grandmother in Texas. There John experienced some of his fondest memories such as trying to catch chickens to have for dinner, or having Grandma teach him how to make a pillow, hand stitching and all.

After moving to California, John attended Monroe Elementary, Woodrow Wilson Junior High, and Hanford High schools where he made lifelong friendships. He enlisted in the Army and served in the Infantry as an indirect fire crewman, stationed in Korea and at Fort Carson, Colorado. After receiving an honorable discharge he returned home and served three years in the National Guard and attended College of the Sequoias, earning a degree in business.

John worked for the City of Hanford for several years, and after earning certificates from Sequoia Vocational Institute, he worked in computer programing. In 1985 he found his true calling in life when he began working in general construction. Over the next ten years, he honed his skills in residential framing, plumbing, roofing, and electrical and earned a General Contractors License in 1992.

John worked as a lead man on construction, mainly in the Bay Area, for American Inc. of Visalia for 14 years, after which he started John Calhoun Construction in Hanford where he did remodeling jobs for local businesses as well as for friends and family. Although his health eventually forced his retirement, you could still find him out in his shop area working on a project; when the weather grew too wet and cold outside, he’d turn the snooker table, in his living room, into a makeshift work bench and kept working. From baby cradles for new great-nieces, to picnic tables for wedding gifts and child-sized seating, to barns and houses to spur the imaginations of little boys and girls, John was in his element when working with wood.

He was a kind, honest, hard-working man who would do anything for you, generous with his time and skills. John was fun-loving, devoted to his family, and the times he spent with family meant the world to him.

Beloved husband, brother, and uncle, John is survived by his wife Susan, and step-daughter Dawna Lantz of Hanford; his siblings Jesse Calhoun and his wife Lu Ann of Hanford, Ron Calhoun and his wife Sherill of Idaho, Margaret Whitmire and her husband Melburn of Loomis; and Tom Calhoun and his significant other Renee Pompei from the Sacramento area. John is also survived by sisters-in-law Jeanette Jacinto, Judy Costa and her husband Manuel all of Hanford, by brothers-in-law Robert Jacinto Rodriguez and AJ Rodriguez of Roseville, and a host of dearly loved nieces and nephews.

John was predeceased by his parents, his mother-in-law Madalyn Jacinto, and Al, his beloved Australian Shepard.