Patrick William Gallahue

Patrick William Gallahue, Sr., 79, of Rantoul, IL passed away at home on Saturday, April 20, 2024. Pat was born December 2, 1944 in Urbana, IL. to James T. Gallahue, Sr. and Luella (Culkin) Gallahue. He married Catherine Caraker on January 7, 1977 at St. Malachy Catholic Church, Rantoul, IL, she survives.

Pat is also survived by his three children, Anne Marie Gallahue of Danville, Sarah Wiese of Fisher and Patrick W. Gallahue II of London, England. Five grandchildren, Ryan Braxton of Rantoul, Kaitlyn Miles of Tunnel Hill, IL., Savannah, Pierson and Elijah Wiese of Fisher. He is also survived by his four sisters, Mary Gallahue, San Leandro, CA., Margaret (Eugene) Ochs of Milford, IL., Ella Albrecht of Hertford, NC., and Dorothy (Marty) Berka of Wisconsin Dells, WI., 1 sister-in-law Mary Miller of Ft. Collins, CO. and 2 brothers-in-law Douglas (Terry) Caraker of Ft. Meyers, FL., Clarence (Patricia) Caraker of Olmstead, IL. Pat is also survived by many nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother James T. Gallahue Jr., former brother-in-law Bill Albrecht, and son-in-law Brant Miles.

Pat graduated from Donovan Memorial Grade School in 1958 and Rantoul Township High School in 1962. In the fall of 1962, he attended Northern Illinois University for 1 year. He subsequently worked for Culkin Construction and Charlie Hadler’s garage before enlisting in the Army in February 1968. During his service Pat was a dental tech stationed in Germany and was honorably discharged in February 1971. After his discharge he attended Eastern Illinois University and graduated in the Spring of 1973 with a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing. After graduation he worked for Litchfield Construction and Caraco Construction Company as a general contractor and a licensed electrician. Pat began working for Eastern Illinois Electric Coop in Paxton starting in July 1990 and worked there until his retirement in January 2012. During that time, he judged 4H electrical projects at both the County and State Fairs for many years.

Pat was an avid pilot and aviation enthusiast and obtained his private pilots license in January 1975 and his commercial pilots license in April 1978. He was an active member of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) since 1974 and served in a multitude of roles as an EAA officer for many years. He attended EAA’s annual AirVenture Fly-In more than 35 times and volunteered for 27 years at AirVenture and KidVenture. He especially enjoyed introducing kids to the joys of aviation through KidVenture and the EAA Young Eagles program.

Pat was a life time member of St. Malachy Catholic Church, Rantoul, IL. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus #4450 in Rantoul for many years.

Pat was known for his story telling and ended most conversations with friends and family with “Would you like the joke of the day?” followed by a joke or two.

Services will include Prayers of the Rosary at 4:45 pm Thursday, April 25, with visitation to follow from 5 to 7 pm at Lux Memorial Chapel, Rantoul. Funeral Mass will be at 10 am Friday, April 26 at St. Malachy Catholic Church, Rantoul. Burial will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Rantoul, with Father Joel Phelps officiating. Military rites will be accorded. Lunch will be served following services at the Knights of Columbus, Rantoul.

Memorials may be made to The Henry J. Smith Charitable Fund for St. Malachy School, the Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 29 in Champaign to support Pat’s passion to encourage youth to explore the world of aviation or an organization of the donor’s choice.

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