Tribute to Bill Gallagher

He was a Marine veteran and an avid supporter of gun rights. He was the divorced father of three adult daughters. At the time of his death he was nursing his 2nd wife as she lost her battle with breast cancer. He had not shared his lifelong battle with depression with anyone but his wives. Although he was a hard worker, he was having financial problems. He thought he was having health problems but didn’t want to go to the doctor. At his funeral his ex & his widow told us they’d expected him to wait until after the widow’s death to commit suicide. In his suicide note he said he couldn’t wait anymore. He didn’t want to leave a mess for his sick wife so he dropped off his dog at a friend’s house & drove to another friend’s funeral home in the early morning, phoned 911 to report his own suicide, and then lay down in the parking lot & shot himself in the head with his favorite pistol, the one he kept in his truck. His widow, who wasn’t expected to live more than two months longer, lived another five. In Canada male suicides often survive. In the USA they usually die. What a difference a pistol makes. Canadians only have hunting rifles. His death is so sad and makes no sense.