Fr. Brian Gallagher
Funeral Mass was held Aug. 5 at Immaculate Conception Church in Monrovia for Father Brian Gallagher, who died July 29 of brain cancer.

A native of Ireland, Father Gallagher was ordained at All Hallows College in Dublin on June 19, 1960 for the Diocese of Yakima, Wash. He ministered at a number of parishes, including serving as pastor of Immaculate Conception Churches in Mabton and Roslyn and St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Church in Benton, Wash.

Following his retirement in 1985, he assisted in parishes and retreat centers around the country and, in 1998, became the chaplain in residence at Santa Teresita Hospital in Duarte, where he remained until 2006. He then served a small community in San Juan Capistrano, providing a Roman Rite Tridentine Mass.

Father Gallagher's All Hallows classmate, Msgr. Jack Foley, pastor emeritus at Holy Redeemer Church in Montrose, led a prayer service for Father Gallagher at his bedside in Fernview Convalescent Hospital shortly before his peaceful death surrounded by many friends.

A Requiem Mass will be celebrated at the St. Paul Cathedral in Yakima on Aug. 11 followed by interment at nearby Calvary Cemetery. A Memorial Mass was held at St. Aidan Church in Kinlough, County Leitrim, Ireland, where Father Gallagher celebrated his first Mass following his ordination.

Br. William McCall, SM
Funeral Mass was held July 15 at the Marianist Center in Cupertino, Calif., for Marianist Brother William McCall, 81, who died July 9 of cancer. He had been a longtime teacher, administrator and moderator of the High Sierras Mountaineering Program at Chaminade College Preparatory in West Hills for 22 years.

Born in Camas, Idaho, he spent his youth in various cities in Idaho, Montana and Los Angeles. In 1943, after completing his junior year of high school, he enlisted in the Navy and was stationed in DeLand, Fla. His duties included aviation ordinance and servicing aircraft machine guns, cannons and bombs. He earned the rank of Aviation Ordinanceman, Second Class, and was honorably discharged from the Navy in 1946.

Upon returning to Los Angeles, he completed high school at Metropolitan High and entered college on the G.I. Bill at Loyola University. He graduated in 1952 with a bachelor's degree in English literature and a minor in philosophy. He earned a master's degree in English literature from Loyola in 1959.

Brother McCall was 28 years old, working as a sales trainee at a Los Angeles floor coverings company, when he discerned a call to serve God. An assistant pastor at St. John the Evangelist Church in Los Angeles counseled him toward the Society of Mary. He entered the novitiate in 1955 at Santa Cruz and, in 1960, professed perpetual vows in San Francisco.

Brother McCall spent most of his more than 30-year teaching career at Chaminade College Preparatory, where he taught for 22 years and served as president from 1982-1986. A great promoter of speech and debate wherever he taught, he is also fondly remembered for creating the High Sierra Mountaineering Program at Chaminade and, later, at Archbishop Mittty High School in San Jose.

He led weeklong hikes for students into the High Sierra Mountains of California, where the young hikers could experience the beauty of nature and closeness to God. Brother Frank Spaeth, who frequently assisted Brother McCall on the trips noted: "He had a wonderful rapport with the students. He was always very positive and carefully trained the students to be in the outdoors."

"Many former students ask about him," said Father John McEnhill, who worked at Chaminade with Brother McCall. "They reminisce about his class and his love of the English language and its history."

Remembered by many as a quiet, deeply religious man, Brother McCall was concerned about social justice issues and the plight of minorities in America. He had a great appreciation for ecological and animal protection concerns and was always aware of those with special needs, whether medical or material, according to members of his religious community.

Burial was July 16 at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Los Altos, Calif. Memorial contributions may be sent to the Marianist Province of the U.S., 4425 W. Pine Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63108.

Sr. Mildred Niehuser, SP
Funeral Mass was held June 17 at St. Joseph Residence, Seattle, for Sister of Providence Mildred Niehuser (Sister Paul Xavier), 94, who died June 11.

Born in Portland, Oregon, the ninth child in a family of ten children, she entered the Novitiate at Mount St. Vincent in Seattle in 1935 and took final vows in 1940. Her many ministry assignments included bookkeeping for Providence Hospitals and teaching in elementary and high schools staffed by the Sisters of Providence. In Burbank, she was a teacher at St. Finbar School (1945-51) and at Providence High School (1968-70).

Burial was at Calvary Cemetery in Seattle. Memorial contributions may be made to the Sisters of Providence Retirement Fund, 9 East 9th Ave., Spokane, WA 99202-1209.