Obituary of Edward Joseph GALLAGHER

Edward Joseph Gallagher CPA, CA

It is with profound sadness that we announce the death of our beloved husband, father, grandad, brother, uncle and friend, Edward (Ed) Gallagher of Calgary, Alberta on March 21, 2020.

Ed leaves behind his wife of 49 years May; his son Brian (Susan) of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, his daughter Fran (Mike) of Calgary, Alberta, and his son Paul of Toronto, Ontario; cherished grandchildren Liam, Gemma, Owen, Siobhan, Bennett and Callum.  His sisters Marie (Ron) Gale of Edmonton, Alberta and Phyllis Sevcik of Victoria, Australia; as well as nieces and nephews in Canada and Scotland.

Ed was born on July 7, 1939 in Glasgow, Scotland.  He articled with McNaught and Co. in Glasgow, Scotland before obtaining his Chartered Accountant qualifications in 1963 from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.  Ed moved from Scotland to London, England to work as a financial analyst with the Ford Motor Company for 4 years.  He then moved back to Glasgow and worked for the following CA firms: Price Waterhouse & Co., Touche, Ross & Co. and the Strathclyde Regional Council.  Edward moved his family to Edmonton Alberta in 1978 to work for the Office of the Auditor General for the Province of Alberta for 15 years.  During that time, he also obtained qualifications from the Alberta Institute of Chartered accountants in 1982.   Ed joined the Alberta Energy and Utilities Board in 1995 where he would stay until his retirement in 2004.  After his retirement Ed took on contract work as a Chartered Accountant until retiring for the second time in 2008. At this time Ed and his wife May moved to Calgary, Alberta to be closer to their grandchildren.  During his retirement Ed focussed on his love of music and began teaching violin at Studio Nine School of Music where he remained an active teacher until March of 2020.

Edward enjoyed music and was a member of many orchestras in the violin section from the time he was a young boy playing in the Glasgow school’s orchestra to being a current member of the Calgary Civic Symphony.  Ed was also an ardent soccer fan, and a founding member of the Edmonton branch of the Glasgow Celtic Supporters club.  Ed and May travelled extensively from 1994- 2019 visiting many cities in Europe, southeast Asia and north America.

Although he enjoyed great success in his professional and musical careers, Edward’s proudest achievement was his family. He will always be fondly remembered for the time, energy and dedication he devoted to them. Ed was a kind and gentle man, and his witty optimism was infectious.  Ed cherished conversation with anyone he met and was always able to make one understand how glad he was to see them.  His Enthusiastic and generous spirit will be missed by family and friends.

The family would like to thank the staff at the South Health Campus ICU for their excellent care.  Also, a very special thanks to Ed’s family doctor Dr. Melanie Hnatiuk.

A Private family funeral will be held at St. Albert the Great Parish on Tuesday March 31, 2020 at 2:00 p.m.  In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Salvation Army or the Winnifred Stewart foundation 11130 131 Street NW Edmonton, Alberta T5M 1C1.