Gallagher Charitable Society

A volunteer organization led by the students at Saint Joseph's College

Photo by Fr. Tim McFarland

Gallagher Charitable Society History

The earliest written record of what was to become the Gallagher Charitable Society is found in the September 15, 1977 issue of “Stuff”. “Stuff” was the name of the Saint Joseph’s College student newspaper in 1977. The article states that a group of Gallagher students, watching the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy telethon, got the idea of raising money through the use of a Softball Marathon. They were Frank Marinaro, Kevin Miller, Jim Pronteau, Mike Fiebelkorn and Chris Bott. Gallagher Hall sponsored the marathon and teams from the College played for 59 innings and raised $300 for the telethon.

That success led to more ambitious planning. Frank Marinaro, Gallagher dorm governor, led the men of Gallagher Hall in planning “Operation Christmas Basket.” The goal was to provide a Christmas basket for the poor in Jasper County. Fund raising became more ambitious and included College students giving up a meal, fundraising from local businesses and a floor hockey marathon. The November 10, 1977 issue of “Stuff” tells of the plan, and the December 8, 1977 issue of “Stuff” says that they raised $1500 in cash and pledges during a 22 hour floor hockey marathon.

These paired events became the backbone of Gallagher Hall charity. The next year the men of Gallagher sponsored softball and floor hockey marathons and used other fund drives to raise money for the Jerry Lewis Telethon and what was now an annual Christmas party for the poor children in Jasper County. Bert Vallenkamp, Al Borck, Jim Pronteau and Tom Krodel organized the second annual Christmas party for December 17, 1978 and raised $2100 for the event. In 1979, 500 students gave up their dinner meal. That and a 20 ½ hour floor hockey marathon raised $2500. The rest, as they say, is history.

Several things stand out. Saint Joseph College students made these events happen. They did the organizing, fund-raising and work that turned their ideas into reality. At some point the Gallagher Hall event became a club named the “Gallagher Charitable Society.” When I entered Gallagher Hall as Priest in Residence in 1988 the men of Gallagher asked me to become the Club’s faculty sponsor. So it was a Club by 1988.

My goal has been that this stay a student run event, so I give only minor advice. I did start the addition of giving used refurbished toys so that the children could get two toys each year, one new and wrapped and the other a used toy they could select. I find the used toys at many locations, but I am always gratified by the number of Saint Joseph’s College employees who bring us toys throughout the year. Professor Allan Broussard helped the Club with fund accounting for a number of years. Otherwise the students do all of the planning, fund raising, new toy purchasing, gift wrapping, mailings, accounting, and all that goes into the main event, the Christmas party.

There have been ups and downs, but there have been no gaps. Students have always stepped forward to get the job done. Every year since 1977 there has been a Christmas party for the poor kids of Jasper County. In good years there have also been donations for playground equipment, donations to the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon, and food basket deliveries to homes.

The earliest yearbook notice I found on the Gallagher Charitable Society is the 1985 yearbook. It states that Gallagher Hall raised over $1,800 with the floor hockey marathon and the local Wilco grocery provided chicken dinners for the parents and children who attended the Christmas party. The Gallagher Charitable society has won numerous awards and honors. The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Award (1990) was given to club president Steve James (class of 91). The Indiana Conference of Higher Education – Indiana Conference Compact for outstanding public service was awarded to Kris Krouse (Club President 94-96) in Indianapolis on April 5 1994. The greatest awards, though, have always been the pride that comes from giving and the grace of seeing the smiles on the faces of the children who had a Christmas with Santa. I know that I have left out many important events and people, so if you can add something to this history, please click here to contact Fr. Stang and send me your information or even pictures.

THE EVENT TODAY

There have been changes. The effort now is almost totally for the poor of Jasper County. The Student Association now directly funds the event, so some of the fundraisers, like the floor hockey marathon, have faded away. Students from all of the dormitories have become involved. Fundraisers have begun reappearing this year because of a major increase in the number of children planning to come to the event. The Club is still named the Gallagher Charitable Society, but the name now honors both the founding dormitory and Bishop Gallagher, former bishop of our diocese. Involved students now come from every dormitory of the College as well as day students. Campus ministry, C.PP.S., coaches, dining services, even the wife of our College President have pitched in to help make the event a success.

As Club President in 2000 & 2001, Tim Clark greatly increased the club’s activities. Calvin Metts & Heather Mikus (Presidents from 2002-2005) kept up what Tim started. Recently the Saint Joseph’s College baseball team, under the leadership of their coach, Rick O’Dette, has become a major supporter of the Christmas party. Melinda Maile, Jenna Ketch and Joel Rice were 2006 Chairpersons. In 2007 Seniors Kim Klaus, Maggie Hagenauer led Gallagher Charitable Society with help from Joanna Askwith. This year the leaders are Lauren Stoffel and Amy Maile.

The Christmas event has grown. More than 200 children attended the event each of the last two years. Santa has always made an appearance, but now he gets a lot of competition. There are many events and activities for the kids. “Elves” abound. They run games and activities, hand out books (courtesy of the SJC Education Club) and food baskets, paint faces and give away toys. The children also receive toothbrushes from Hillcrest Family Dental in Rensselaer and a nice Brunch served by the College food service. Fr. Tim McFarland is there every year to document the event with his camera. Military duty and overseas deployment meant I missed five Christmas parties, but Fr. Tim’s photograph’s quickly go up on his web page, and I was able to enjoy the smiles on the faces of students and children alike. As has happened for twenty years, children still get to sit on Santa’s lap and receive two presents, one new and wrapped to be a surprise, the other used but still possessing many hours of future service to growing imaginations. For those of you looking for written documentation of recent Gallagher Charitable Society Christmas events, the latest article is in the Dec. 6, 2007 Issue of the College newspaper, “The Observer”.

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