Kathleen (Mullen) Gallagher

Kathleen Gallagher (nee Mullen), was born on April 21, 1936 and joined her husband Stephen in heaven on January 2, 2022. She was the oldest child of five born in New York to Katherine (nee Clifford) and John Mullen, both Irish immigrants. She is survived by her brother John. Awaiting her in paradise are her siblings Daniel, Della McAuliffe, and Sr. Marjorie (Margie) Mullen, OP. They grew up in St. Nicholas of Tolentine parish in the West Bronx, and she graduated from Tolentine High School. She married Stephen Gallagher (RIP 1994), born in Gort, County Galway, Ireland, in New York in 1957. They settled on City Island in the Bronx and began raising the first of their six children there. In 1962 they moved to the house in the Pelham Bay section of the borough where Kathleen would live the rest of her days. Kathleen suspended her young career in health care to focus on her growing family, but was active in the PTA at Our Lady of the Assumption school and other activities in that parish throughout the 1960s and ‘70s. When her youngest reached school age she repursued her ambitions, earning several Bachelors degrees and a Masters degree in Nursing in the 1980s at Lehman and Dominican Colleges. She used her experience, wisdom and education to help young people throughout most of the rest of her life. She became a high school guidance counselor, and then as a Registered Nurse a teacher of nursing. She guided aspiring nurses at DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx for more than 20 years. For many, raising a thriving family of six and achieving success in academia and the workplace would be enough. An avid supporter and devotee of Irish culture, dance, and music, Kathleen then would become a giant in the Irish cultural community, on both sides of the Atlantic. All of her children – Kevin, Maureen Magliocchino, Michael, Patsy Cahill, Stephen, and Tim - participated in Irish dance or music, and son Stephen won the All-World Irish Dancing Championship in Dublin in 1976. Kathleen is survived by all of her children and grandchildren Claire and Maggie Gallagher and Patrick and Stephen Magliocchino.

She was active in the following community and Irish-American cultural organizations, and her leadership, enthusiasm, and commitment will be sorely missed by them, among others:
 The County Kerry Patriotic and Benevolent Association of New York
 The Hope Charity
 The Michael Coleman – Martin O’Grady Branch of the Comhaltas Celtóirí Éireann (New York) and organizer of their fabulous ceili's
 The Parents and Students of Irish Dance and Music of North America (PSIDMA)
 The annual PSIDMA Communion Breakfast in support of Calvary Hospital

- Active member of the Doonbeg Social Club 

Kathleen’s motto was “Friends treat you like the friend you are.” She had a smile for everyone and
made it a point to remember the name and story of all she met. She would hope that her legacy would
be that we might all learn from her example and be kinder to one another.

Family and friends are invited to Pleasant Manor Funeral Home, Inc. 575 Columbus Avenue Thornwood, New York 10594 on Thursday, January 6, 2022 and Friday, January 7, 2022 from 4:00 - 8:00 PM for visitation.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Kathleen on Saturday, January 8, 2022 at 10:45 AM at St. Barnabas Church in the Bronx, New York.  Kathleen will be laid to rest in her family plot at St. Mary's Cemetery in Yonkers. 

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly asks that you please consider a donation in Kathleen's honor to:

Helping Other People (hope-charity.org) - please visit the link below for your convenience 

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