Patricia Ellen Gallagher ’81

Patricia Ellen Gallagher ’81 passed away May 23 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She was born on March 17, 1959, in New Haven, Connecticut, and grew up in Cheshire, Connecticut. After Dartmouth she attended the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the University of Denver, obtaining her B.A. in literature and master’s in library and information science. Pat worked as a technical writer for several companies in Silicon Valley and as a freelance writer. She had a quick wit and was an avid reader her entire life with a passion for sharing good books and movies. She was also enthusiastic about politics and all things Irish. What made Pat happiest was cooking for her friends and family, attending live concerts (especially the Grateful Dead), and numerous cats she adopted and loved through the years. She had gumption and calmness in a crisis. Once on a rafting trip when it became clear that the river guide was out of his element and their boat flipped over in Class III rapids, the other passenger and guide panicked. Pat helped the passenger swim to shore then helped retrieve and ferry the boat back to safety, hauling what gear could be salvaged up a long steep incline. Her favorite charity was Care and Share Foodbank of Colorado. She is survived by her mother, Nancy, two sisters, and one brother.