William J. Galler, 88, formerly of Avon Lake, and Danville, Ohio, died peacefully on Thursday, September 6, 2012, in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he was living at the time, following a brief illness. Born in Garfield, New Jersey, on January 30, 1924 to the late Frank and Rosalia Galler, Bill was a teacher and librarian.
He is survived by his son, William, Jr. and daughter-in-law, Barbara (Bolden) of Redmond, Washington; daughter, Rose and son-in-law, Phil Dufault of Gaffney, South Carolina; and son, Jim and daughter-in-law, Jeannette (Duval) of Stokesdale, North Carolina.
He was preceded in death by his wife of 56 years, Minnie Galler (Oosting); and brothers, Frank and George.
Bill was a veteran of World War II, having served as a medical corpsman at General Eisenhower’s Headquarters. It was in Germany during World War II that he met Minnie Oosting, who was an Army nurse. Bill and Minnie lived in Danville, during the 1950′s, where Bill was a high school English teacher. He and Minnie then moved to Avon Lake, where they lived for over 50 years. Bill was the librarian at Avon Lake High School from the early 1960′s through the mid 1970′s.
He enjoyed bowling for many years and was an enthusiastic golfer, having played for the last time, less than two weeks before his passing. Bill was also an avid reader and researcher of his family’s history. He and Minnie made two trips to Germany and Hungary to meet relatives and research their family histories.
For many years after retirement, Bill and Minnie volunteered for the Retired Senior Volunteer Program of Lorain County, where Bill was once named Volunteer of the Year.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, October 27, 2012, at 11 A.M., at Resthaven Memory Gardens of Avon, 3700 Center Rd.
In lieu of flowers and cards, the family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, 322 8th Ave., 7th Floor, New York, NY 10001-6792 or the Alzheimer’s Association, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090-6011.
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