Colleen Callahan

Colleen Callahan is the Democratic candidate in the 2008 congressional elections for the 18th Congressional District (map) of Illinois.

Bio
Callahan has been the farm] [broadcaster for WMBD radio, and later TV, for 30 years.

After graduating from the University of Illinois in 1973, she moved to Peoria to work for WMBD. This gave her the opportunity to travel the world, including a trip to Afghanistan and Iraq, paid for at her own expense, at the invitation of the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

Her family has been active in politics for a long time. Her father, Fran Callahan, was Democratic Chair for Iroquois County, Illinois. Her grandfather, Joe Callahan, was an Illinois State Representative. Her uncle, Gene Callahan, was the Administrative Assistant and Press Secretary for Lieutenant Governor Paul Simon and Chief of Staff for Senator Alan Dixon.

Callahan and her husband Dick Burns live on a farm outside of Peoria where they raise purebred Angus cattle. They have a grown daughter who is a practicing attorney]] in Chicago.

2008 elections
As Republican Ray LaHood is retiring after serving since 1995, Callahan's Republican opponent is Aaron Schock.

Committees
Callahan will be assigned committees if and when he is elected to Congress.

Affiliations
Callahan has served on the executive boards of many local organizations, including the Peoria YWCA, the Nature Conservancy, Great Rivers Regional Board, Youth for a Cause, Peoria Children’s Home, University of Illinois Alumni Association, and Morton Community Bank. She has also served as a member of the St. Francis Medical Center Women’s Health Services Public Relations Committee, and is a member of the National Association of Women Business Owners. She was the first female President of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB), and was chairman of the NAFB Ethics Committee.

External resources

 * 2008 Race Tracker page on Illinois's 18th Congressional District
 * Colleen Callahan for Congress official campaign website
 * 2008 campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
 * Campaign announcement video from YouTube
 * Colleen Callahan Communications professional website