Joanne Gallagher

TROY - Prayers will be Wednesday at 11:15 a.m. the at the Higgins-Reardon Funeral Homes, Boardman-Canfield Chapel, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at noon at St. Joseph Church in Austintown, for Joanne Louise Gallagher, 67, formerly of Canfield, who passed away Thursday after a long battle with breast cancer.
Joanne was born Jan. 26, 1950, in Youngstown, a daughter of the late John L. and Ruth M. (Daus) Brajkovich.
Joanne graduated from Ursuline High School in 1968 and went on to earn a B.A. in Psychology and an M.S. in Education from Youngstown State University. In addition to her education, she was a Licensed Professional Counselor.
She was employed by YSU as a Career Counselor and also taught college courses in the psychology department throughout her tenure. Education was her passion, and she took pride in her work. She was honored to be the 2009 recipient of the American Association for Employment in Education for Research and Publication and the recipient of The Youngstown State University Distinguished Service Award in 2011. She retired in 2011 from YSU after 25 years of service.
Joanne loved spending time with family and friends, cherished her volunteering, enjoyed reading and discussions with her book club, and was an avid walker. She especially enjoyed walking with dear friends both in Youngstown and Troy.
After retiring, she dedicated herself to volunteering several hours a week for many local organizations, including St. Vincent DePaul's Society of Troy, St. Patrick's Church, Hospice of Dayton and Youngstown, and she acted as a facilitator for Grief Share in Troy.
Her husband, Lawrence F. Gallagher, whom she married Sept. 3, 1998, passed away Sept. 11, 2009.
Joanne leaves her daughter, Jennifer C. (Pete) Ostapiak of North Jackson; two sons, Donald C. (Erin) Craig Jr. of Troy and John M. (Sara Nelson) Craig of Westlake; 12 grandchildren, Eric, Chelsea, Lauren, Anna, Devon, Gabe, Nicholas, Jacob, Ben, Rileigh, Lucy and Annie; a sister, Ruth A. (Dave) Humphrey; a niece, Julie (Randy) Brainard; and a nephew, Jay (Kate) Humphrey all of Tucson, Ariz.; brothers- in-law Timothy (Karen) Gallagher and Michael (Pru) Gallagher, both of Youngstown, and Patrick (Renee) Gallagher of Land-of-Lakes, Fla.; sisters-in-law Maggie (Thor) Prayong and Maryann Gallagher of Youngstown; several nieces and nephews; and her beloved friend, Tom Rohrbach.
Besides her husband and parents, Joanne was also preceded in death by a granddaughter, Jessica Kate Sedmak.
Family and friends may call on Tuesday from 5 to 8 p.m. at the funeral home.
A Mass and celebration of her life will be held at St. Patrick's Church in Troy on a later date.
In lieu of flowers, material tributes may take the form of donations in her memory to St. Vincent DePaul Society, 409 E. Main St., Troy, OH 45373.

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