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James ‘Jim’ F. Gallagher

James ‘Jim’ F. Gallagher

ESCANABA — James “Jim” F. Gallagher, 82, of Escanaba, passed away on Thursday, July 4, 2019 at his home surrounded by his loving family.

He was born on Dec. 14, 1936 in Escanaba, son of Daniel and Winifred (Carmody) Gallagher. Jim graduated from Holy Name Catholic High School.

Jim served in the U.S Marines from 1956 to 1958.

On Aug. 8, 1964, Jim married Patricia Deal at St. Patrick’s Church in Escanaba. In 1994 they renewed their marriage vows on Beaver Island, a favorite family vacation spot. They would have celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary next month.

He was employed with Harnischfeger Corporation from April 1959 to August 1983. He then worked for Riggers Union out of Chicago from 1986 until his retirement in 1996.

Jim was a life-long member of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish. He was a proud member of Knights of Columbus 640 Escanaba Council for 21 years. During his tenure, he rose to 4th degree status and took pride working the Tootsie Roll drive for almost 20 years, which helped to raise money for disabled children.

Jim will be remembered as a loving, kind, compassionate, easy going and wonderful person. He loved being around his family, especially his grandchildren. When not enjoying his time with family, he could be seen watching Packer games, golf and Western movies. Other activities he enjoyed included playing cribbage, woodworking and taking walks in the woods, often accompanied by a canine friend, as he loved dogs.

Jim was known to have a sense of humor and kind smile. Furthermore, he often could be found striking up a friendly conversation with a complete stranger as he adored meeting new people. His one vice was his love of lotto tickets. His hope was to win the big one to share it with friends and family.

After Jim retired, he enjoyed spending time at Tommy’s restaurant having coffee and conversing with friends. Additionally, for 12 years he loved volunteering at St. Vincent de Paul. During his time there, he was known as the “Toy Master” due to his ability to fix broken toys. His grandchildren often benefitted from this.

Survivors include his wife Patricia A. Gallagher of Escanaba; children, Cindy Marie (fiancé Philip Carlson) of Escanaba and James D. (Sarah) Gallagher of Northville, Mich.; grandchildren, Jacob Vader and Keira and Teagan Gallagher; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Daniel and Winifred Gallagher; brothers, Daniel Gallagher, Michael Gallagher and Kenneth Gallagher; sisters, Blanche Gydison and Beatrice Gallagher; and step-father, Edward Blazek who helped raise him from the age of 4 after his father passed away and his mother remarried.

Jim will be deeply missed by his family and friends. All knew they were loved by him through his selfless actions.

Visitation will be on Thursday, July 11 from noon to 2:30 p.m. at the Crawford Funeral Home, 302 S., 13th St., Escanaba. The Knights of Columbus will have the Rosary at 1 p.m. The Mass of Christian Burial will follow at 3 p.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church with Rev. Rick Courier officiating.

The family is requesting to wear something green (shirt, tie, scarf or jewelry) in memory of Jim’s Irish heritage.

Burial will be in Gardens of Rest Cemetery.

A message of condolence may be directed to the family by visiting crawfordfuneralhomes.net.