Thomas Gallagher, ex-PNI union official, dies at 64

WHEN Tom Gallagher walked into a room you knew it.

At 6 feet 4, 260 pounds, Tom was a presence to be reckoned with. But it was not only his physical stature that attracted people. His jovial Irish sense of humor could captivate you just as easily.

"He always walked very erect, with his shoulders back," said his sister, Eileen. "He looked stern a lot of the time, but he was always joking around."

Thomas Joseph Gallagher, supervisor of the mail room for the Daily News and Inquirer and former Pressmen's Union official, died Wednesady after a long battle with cancer. He was 64 and lived in Warrington.

Tom worked for Philadelphia Newspapers and its predecessor companies for 42 years, starting out as a "fly boy" in the press room when Walter Annenberg still owned the papers.

As a union leader, Tom negotiated a number of contracts with Philadelphia Newspapers Inc. when the Knight-Ridder Co. owned the papers.

He was former business manager of Pressmen's Local 16 and later president of the Philadelphia Council of Newspaper Unions, which represented all of the company unions.

In 1995, he became supervisor of the mail room where the newspapers are assembled and bundled for delivery, and was no longer a union member.

"He was a tough negotiator," said Fred Lehman, now supervisor of the mail room with the formal title of director of packaging. "He negotiated a lot of contracts for the unions. He was a great guy, a lot of fun."

In the mail room, Tom was "a tough boss," Lehman said. "He knew the job came first. He knew what it took to get the job done. But he also knew how to have fun."

Jim Brown, now director of printing for Philadelphia Newspapers, who knew Tom for 41 years and was in the Pressmen's Union for 18 years, said Tom had the regard of both union and management during some tough contract negotiations.

"He was a real tough negotiator, but he was respected by both sides," Jim said. "He had such an expertise in negotiating that the company wanted to get him into their labor relations department."

As a boss, Tom insisted on a good day's work for a good day's pay, Jim said.

"He had his share of '10-percenters,' guys who wouldn't work, and sometimes he would counsel them, try to get them to shape up."

Jim said Tom's fellow workers were impressed by his courage when he was fighting cancer.

"Even during two sessions of chemo, he never missed a day's work," Jim said. "The first time, he shaved his head knowing he was going to lose his hair. He was a fighter. We all hoped that he would make it."

Growing up in Southwest Philadelphia Tom was one of 12 children - six boys and six girls - born to Helen McMaster Gallagher, whose husband left the family after the youngest was born, leaving her to raise the dozen offspring by herself.

They lived in a house with one bathroom.

The youngest, Steve, said it wasn't so bad for him.

"All the older kids went out to work to help support the family. For me, it was just fine."

"He had a very dry sense of humor," Steve said of his brother. "Some people took him seriously when he was just kidding. It took them a while to realize he was being funny."

Asked how the family could survive with 12 children and a single mom, Steve said, "People were good to us."

"He was damn strong," said his daughter, Lori Gallagher McKenna. "He was big and goofy and dependable. He had a great sense of humor.

"When he walked into a room, his looks commanded respect. But when it came time to discipline his children, he was all bark and no bite."

Every Wednesday, Tom arrived at Lori's house in Gloucester Township, N.J., with pizza for the grandkids. They called him "Pizza Pop-Pop."

Tom's sister, Eileen Gallagher, said Tom was a "good man, a good father, a good brother. You could go to him with any problem and he would listen to you and offer good advice."

Tom was proud of his Irish heritage and made three trips to Ireland in the past few years.

He and all of his siblings attended St. Francis de Sales School, and West Catholic High School, divided in those days into all-girl and all-boy schools.

Before moving to Warrington, Tom lived in Gloucester Township, N.J. He married the former Anne Kassner in 1968. The marriage ended in divorce and he married Carol Douglass in 1999.

Tom was an avid golfer, and had a beloved cat, Junior.

He also is survived by two sons, Thomas J. and Brad W. Gallagher; another daughter, Kelli M. Milliner; four other sisters, Jacqueline, Kay, Carol and Connie; four other brothers, Daniel, William, Neil and Edward, and seven grandchildren. He was predeceased by another sister, Phyllis.

Services: Funeral Mass 11 a.m. today at St. Joseph's Church, 1795 Columbia Ave., Warrington. Friends may call at 10 a.m. Burial will be in George Washington Cemetery, Plymouth Meeting. *