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Gallagher, Thomas D.

January 1, 1941 –
 May 12, 2015

Obituary

Thomas Daniel Gallagher was a gentleman, patriot, friend, loving husband, and dedicated father and grandfather. Tom was born to his parents, the late Dr. Thomas and Mrs. Catherine McCullough Gallagher, on New Year’s Day, 1941, in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Tom is survived by his loving wife of 52 years, Mary Alice Mulhern Gallagher, and their children Dr. Molly Gallagher Kolski, Tom Gallagher and wife Civic, Capt. Matthew Gallagher and wife Kelly, Katie Gallagher Coligado and husband David.  His grandchildren: Lauren, David, and Julia Kolski, Gus and Lucy Coligado, Joseph and Mary Gallagher, and Annabelle and Willie Crowson.  Tom was also greatly loved by his many nieces and nephews.  Tom was an only child, so Mary Alice’s four brothers and three sisters, along with their spouses, embraced Tom as a brother. Tom received a Congressional Appointment to the United States Naval Academy and graduated in 1962.  He was a proud alumnus and loyal friend to his fellow classmates, particularly the 18th company.  Tom and his wife, Mary Alice, were sweethearts at St. Mary’s High school and married after he completed Basic School at Quantico, VA on April 27, 1963.  He was commissioned in the United States Marine Corps, loyally served his country for 13 months in Vietnam, and attained the rank of Captain.    Following his military career, Tom had a successful 35-year career with IBM both in the U.S. and in Europe. Over the years, his family made many moves all over the states, thanks to the military and IBM, settling in Dallas, TX in 1980. Just as their youngest child left for college, Tom was offered an opportunity to work for IBM in Europe and he and Mary Alice enjoyed a 7-year adventure in London and Paris before returning to Dallas. Tom was a life-long runner, biker and a disciplined exerciser.  He enjoyed his bike trips to Europe yearly, with his friend/brother in-law Erwin Storz.  He loved volunteering at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children.  And he was always there to help his grown-children with grandchildcare, home improvement and repairs. His legacy is his sense of humor and generosity.  Tom was honest, witty and smart.  He was extremely loyal to his family, friends, and classmates.  Tom quietly and selflessly served others.  Without a doubt, he sacrificed and worked hard as a husband and father to provide the very best he could for his family. A funeral mass will be held at 11a.m. on Friday, June 12, 2015 at All Saints Catholic Church (5231 Meadowcreek Drive, Dallas, TX 75248) and a military burial at the Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, a contribution may be made in Tom’s memory to St. Jude’s Research Hospital for Children, and Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. Arrangements are under the direction of ARIA Cremation Service and Funeral Home 19310 Preston Road Dallas, Texas 75252 214-306-6700      

    Don karns
    6 Jun 2015
    8:50pm

    I volunteered with Tom at Scottish-rite for 7 years. We worked sided by side for all those years. He was such a joy to be around. I will never forget him. He was so smart. We checked in families to the clinics and we have families off all ethnicities. We always call them by their last names. When we would have an East Indian family their name usually had many letters with maybe only two syllables and the rest constants. I had no clue how to pronounce it. I would turn to Tom. The family would say he nailed it. I dearly miss Tom and I only knew him for eight years

    Melinda Alexander
    8 Jun 2015
    9:30am

    Tom is going to be greatly missed at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. He was an outstanding volunteer. He brightened everyone’s day with his witty personality and humorous nature. Our clinic will not be the same without him. We will always remember him as a joyful man with a cheerful and sweet spirit. He was always willing to lend a hand whenever and wherever needed. The Lord definitely gained a one of a kind angel when he got Tom.
    We are praying for your family during this very difficult time.

    John F Carey
    12 Jun 2015
    1:39pm

    Dear Mary Alice and Tommy’s wonderful family
    I was deeply saddened to read of Tommy’s death. I grew up across the street from Tommy at 43 Marlborough Ave. We were very close friends in the old neighborhood, playing all sorts of games together. Tommy was my substitute “go-to” guy on my paper route whenever I was too ill to peddle my papers.
    Tom’s dad, “Doc”, died in our front parlor, having suffered a heart attack on his way to the bus stop to go to his office. Tommy was just a young kid at the time and Catherine did an exemplary job of raising him by herself. His intelligence was obvious. His accomplishments speak for themselves.
    I was just coming home from three years’ duty in France about the time Tommy was shipping out to ‘Nam. Catherine told me he was posted to DaNang. The last time I saw Tommy was at my mother’s wake in 1971.
    Please accept my most heart-felt condolences.
    John F. Carey 35 Ellicott Rd. Milford,NJ 08848

    Richard Clarke
    12 Jun 2015
    6:32pm

    Such a great family and a leader in all he was a part of.

    Peter Smith
    17 Sep 2015
    7:54pm

    Please accept my belated condolences to Mary Alice and the Gallagher family. I did not learn of Tom’s death until a few days ago when my brother told me he had seem word of it in a recent Naval Academy Alumni magazine. I first knew Tom when we were growing up in South Wilkes Barre (St.Teresa’s grade school, I think) and later at St.Mary’s High School as part of the unique and memorable Class of 58. For me, Tom was one of the best of us, respected and admired by classmates and teachers, especially for his quiet steady temperment, sharp mind and sense of humor and his great outside jump shot on the basketball court. We were all proud of him when he got the appointment to the Naval Academy. I don’t think Tom ever knew he was a source of inspiration to my brother when he was at Annapolis after Tom graduated. I knew about his honored service in the Marines but did not know about his long career with IBM ,his years in Europe and his volunteer work after he retired. I regret very much that we did not stay in touch. I have very fond memories of Tom and Mary Alice in those long-ago days, walking or dancing together. The thought of them together always seemed just right to me then and still does.

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The Peterson Family
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"I can’t say enough about how helpful and professional Dusty Martin, the funeral director at the Aria Cremation location on NW Highway has been. From my initial call, he was kind and informative. My friend died at home while on hospice and she was picked up in about an hour after receiving the call from the hospice nurse. The person who arrived to pick her up was also very professional/respectful and allowed us to take as much time with her as we wished. When I met with Dusty the next day about arrangements, he explained the process and options available without being pushy or trying to “sell” extras. Throughout the process, he kept me informed and, for example, was careful to be certain I understood the cost of the obituary I wanted and offered some options for reducing that cost if I wished. When I stopped by for another reason and started talking about some of the problems I was having with the pictures and media I hoped to use at a memorial lunch I was planning, he not only listened patiently but offered technology advice and let me use his personal media player. I have had experience arranging cremations for four others using two other local companies, and this experience with Dusty at Aria has been by far the best one I have had."
Paula Barnes
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"My Daddy’s service and our family experience at Aria Northwest Highway was truly blessed. Funeral Director Dustin Martin is the kind of person that you would like to see on a more regular basis – but in his industry – you hope to not see him that often. That being said – THANK YOU DUSTIN for your unending kindness, compassion and friendship through the process. Meeting you and discussing Dallas History, Find A Grave and my Dad’s lifelong contributions to the great City of Dallas was simply wonderful! In memory of my dad James A. Dodd, Sr. – I want to personally thank you and let you know that you made everything better in that moment. Your calling to “Be There” is spot on. Aria has a one in a million guy in you! Bling Blinky of TEXAS Shout Out: God Bless You!!"
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