Loved ones gather at accident site to celebrate Jim Callaghan’s life

Today marks one year since Jamesport resident Jim Callaghan died tragically after being struck by a car while jogging on Main Road in Laurel.

Together, over 25 loved ones and friends, including his wife Jennifer and children, gathered in the cold and wind at 5:45 a.m., the moment of the accident, to light Chinese lanterns and send balloons up into the sky in Callaghan’s memory.

A Riverhead sign was decorated with Christmas garland, stuffed animals, notes and photos, and his friends signed a softball with messages for Callaghan.

Jennifer Callaghan surveyed the many who’d turned out in the early morning hours for a man who’d touched all of their lives. “This just shows how much everyone loved him,” she said.

Callaghan’s daughter Kasey said the past year has been “rough”, and filled with sadness. Asked about her father, she said, “He’s indescribable.  If it was ever possible to describe him in one word, I’d remember his laugh. His smile.”

Her father, Kasey said, always encouraged her to do her best. “His whole philosophy was just to always to keep trying, to do good, do better,” she said. “That was his fortune cookie motto.”

Kasey said she spoke to her father two days before he died. Saddened over the loss of her friend’s mother, Kasey said her dad told her he’d always be there for her. “He told me he loved me,” she said.

If he could see the balloons and Chinese lanterns and the many gathered for him, Jennifer Callaghan said Jim would be laughing and smiling. “He’d tell me to stop making a spectacle,” she laughed. “Only he was allowed to do that.”

Her voice soft, Callaghan said if she could see her husband one last time, she’d “just hold onto him. And I’d tell him how much I love him,” she said.

Tears mixed with laughter at the gathering, as friends remembered Jim for his trademark humor.

Reflecting on the her husband, Callaghan remembered all the joyful times. “He used to say that I was the pretty one and he was the funny one,” she said, recalling so very many laughter-filled memories. “At our wedding, after we said ‘I do,’ he said, ‘Hold on. You forgot something,’ to the minister. He said, ‘Now, Jennifer can update her Facebook relationship status.'”

His best friend Sean Tracey said Jim was the “epitome of wit. I miss his wit, his laugh, and his wisdom.”

Jennifer Callaghan thanked the crowd for coming, and for supporting her during the long, grief-filled months.

“You all mean everything to me,” she said.

Although winds and cold prevented many of the balloons from alighting, one Chinese lantern remained steady, illuminating a clear, shining path into the night sky,as the crowd watched silently from below.

Callaghan said that the gathering will also help to keep awareness alive. “Runners and cyclists alike must remain vigilant when out on their runs/rides. Light yourselves up and be visible for your own safety,” she said.

To that end, Jennifer Callaghan also taped a public service announcement to raise awareness about following the rules of the road.

In March, new evidence was uncovered in the ongoing investigation indicating the first vehicle that struck Callaghan, who was jogging in dense fog before dawn, left the scene, according to Suffolk County Police. Officials said they ruled out a medical condition that may have caused Callaghan to be lying in the roadway when he was hit by two westbound vehicles.

Both of those vehicles stopped. His widow said at the time that paint was found on her husband’s clothing that did not match the paint on the two cars that did stop after the accident. The paint, she said, was metallic blue, and indicated that there was a third driver who struck her husband and fled the scene.

No driver was ever found, and the case was closed.

Callaghan said she still hopes that the driver will come forward. “How can they live with themselves, knowing what they’ve done?” she asked. “They must be going through hell.” Having the driver come forward could bring healing, especially for Callaghan’s children, she said.

“Jim Callaghan was a man who needs to be celebrated and I intend to celebrate him for the rest of my life,” Callaghan said last week. “The purpose of the Chinese lanterns it to send our love to the heavens where our loved one now lives.was my husband, my love, and my best friend. He will forever be in my heart and I miss him more than words can say.”