Thomas Kirk Gallagher

Tom was born on September 23, 1954 to Thomas P. Gallagher and Dorothy Kirk in Quincy, MA. After the passing of his mother in childbirth, Tom was raised by his paternal Grandmother Bridget (Bella) Gallagher until he was two. Long after his Grandmother's passing in 1973, he held deep affection for their tender relationship. When he was two and a half years old, his father remarried to Joan Schwemin who legally adopted him and they moved to Bowie, MD in 1964 where he was raised alongside his five siblings, Marie, Susan, Bobby, Amy and Paul. To them, he was known as Tommy.

Tom graduated from Bowie High School in 1972 and served in the US Navy from 1976-1980. In 1978, while stationed abroad, he met his wife, Yen Lee in Taipei, Taiwan. They married in Maryland in 1980 and welcomed their first child, Tommy, in 1982 and their second child, Heather, in 1985. Tom got his BS from the University of Maryland which led to a career in Project Management and Consulting with Government Agencies, both directly and through contracted private companies like CACI, where he spent 22+ years.

He was a thoughtful and humanizing leader, often recalled as "the best boss" by former colleagues. His career and the various teams he worked with was one of his greatest sources of pride aside from his family.

In 2020, Tom retired and spent much of his time tending to his gardens on his over 2 acre property. He had aspirations to open a plant nursery and went back to school to become a Master Gardener.

His favorite flower was the daffodil.

Tom loved bird watching, dancing, traveling, cooking, a strong cup of coffee in the morning and a good drum solo. He liked a dark beer and a long, meandering conversation about everything and nothing. He loved a corny joke and a good pun and had no qualms about being the cheesiest person in the room. In fact, he preferred it. Tom loved his family and cherished his wife and children more than anything.

In his own words, he wants to be remembered as a "kind, caring man with a joke and a smile".

Thomas is survived by his wife, two children, grandsons Lee and Frankie Bullock, son in law, Tim Bullock, five siblings and mother.

There will be a private memorial to celebrate Thomas' life with family and friends. In Lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his honor to The Audubon Society or The American Cancer Society. Please sign the guest book here.