January 9, 1952 – June 20, 2023
Sarah Rebekah Calhoun, 71, recently of Medford, Oregon and formerly a long-time resident of Oakland, California, died suddenly of natural causes at her home on June 20, 2023. She was born to Donald and Elizabeth Calhoun on January 9, 1952 at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where her parents were serving as missionaries of the Baptist General Conference. When she was four-years-old, the family returned to the United States and settled in California, residing first at Berkeley and then at Bakersfield where Sarah was educated in the public schools, graduating from East Bakersfield High School in 1969.
Sarah received a Bachelor’s Degree in 1973 from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She then lived for several months in the United Kingdom, doing research on Great Britain’s National Health Service. Returning to the States, she settled in Oakland and continued her studies at the University of California, Berkeley, receiving Master’s Degrees in public health and urban planning. She was employed for many years as Research Director at the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic in San Francisco. In this capacity, she conducted and supervised numerous public health research projects in the western states. She was known for her perceptive analyses and articulate descriptions in the development of these projects. Following her employment at Haight-Ashbury, she cared for her aged father for five years in her home. She is remembered for her generosity and devotion to family members. She also volunteered for various community organizations, including serving as a docent at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland.
In 2016 she moved to Medford with her long-time partner John McCole, once again becoming involved in community activities. Among these was her volunteer service as a board member at the Medford Food Co-op. She maintained a wide range of interests on various historic and contemporary issues. She was an accomplished photographer, and enjoyed gardening and sharing her home with her cats.
Sarah is survived by her partner John McCole of Medford; by four brothers: Jim (Marsha Feinland, Berkeley) Calhoun of Mt. Shasta, California; Peter (Mary) Calhoun of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada; Jonathan Calhoun of Bakersfield, California; and David (Rebecca Almond) Calhoun of Kansas City, Missouri; by four nephews: Joseph, Daniel, Samuel and Thomas Calhoun and one niece, Emily Gillies; by six grand-nephews and one grand-niece, and by numerous other relatives. She was preceded in death by her parents, Donald and Elizabeth Calhoun, by an infant brother Stephen Thomas Calhoun and an infant nephew Stephen Donald Calhoun. A memorial observance will be held in the Community Hall at St. Mark’s Episcopal Parish, 140 N. Oakdale Ave., Medford at 7:00 p.m. PDT on Saturday, October 21, 2023. Online attendance via the Google Meet platform will be available using the following link: https://meet.google.com/nvk-agdu-usr. Please note that a Google account is not necessary to participate. Those attending in person are invited to join family members for a light buffet supper in the Community Hall at 6:00 p.m.