Eileen C. Galvin's Obituary
Eileen was born in New York City to Catherine and Thomas Foran of County Tipperary, Ireland. She joined her older brothers Andrew and Tom and grew up in typical Irish American Catholic family.While attending Cathedral High School in Manhattan, Eileen was active in her parish societies. She was a member of the Children of Mary and was a founder and officer of the Parish Social Club. Eileen was also a worker for the Catholic Charities and the annual Church Bazaar. Thus began Eileen’s commitment to charitable work.Eileen was a teenager during the Big Band era and boy, did she love to dance. She was very popular at the weekly church dances and could ‘Lindy’ with anyone. Eileen also loved Irish music and probably knew the words to every Irish song ever written. She was very proud of her Irish heritage and knew all the dances. She attended many Irish affairs in Yorkville and danced the night away eight up there with the best of them.Did I tell you Eileen was the apple of her father’s eye? Well she was. Her father Tom Foran was active in Irish circles and loved to take Eileen to his County dances and occasionally to Croke Park (or Gaelic Park as it’s called today) for an Irish football game.One Sunday, Tipperary was playing and since that was Mr. Foran’s County he asked Eileen to come along with him, Guess who was playing that day? Yes, that’s right. It was Ambrose Galvin himself. At that time he was the reigning champ of the GAA. His team having won the last 5-year in a row championships. In Irish circles he was more popular than Joe DiMaggio. Well someone must have introduced Ambrose to Eileen. Champ or no champ the man didn’t stand a chance. The 6 foot 4 inch Ambrose met the 5 foot tall (so she says) Eileen, and the romance began. Mighty Mouse and the Gentle Giant. (as they were known) married soon after they met.They moved to Bogota, New Jersey and raised their two children Thomas and Ellen, and were active in Irish Cultural societies. When Ambrose retired they moved to Florida where they became active in the Irish Heritage Society and took on the responsibility of raising funds for the construction of new facilities at St. Peter Clover.Eileen became active in the Chamber of Commerce in Estero, the Estero Historical Society and Our Lady of Light Catholic Ladies Society. Eileen ran many events for all of these organizations raising much needed money for various causes and became well known for running the fashion show for Our Lady of Light Catholic church. The Fashion Show became such a hot ticket it was moved to the largest country club restaurant in all of SouthWest Florida!When Ambrose became ill she took on the role of CareTaker. Eileen took care of Ambrose at home for 3 years. She was still able to keep herself busy with outside activities in the Chamber and the parish.‘Mighty Mouse’ pulled herself together after the death of her husband Ambrose and was able to run a luncheon for 150 people just 2 weeks after his passing. That is the type of “true grit” Eileen has shown all her life. On the days prior to her death she was at home working on her beloved Fashion Show.Eileen loved her husband, Ambrose. She loved her children Tom and Ellen and her grandchildren Danny, Michelle, Connor, Cameron and great granddaughter Arias. She believed in God and His Blessed Mother.In lieu flowers, as we are in Lent, memorial contributions may be made to Hope Hospice, 9470 HealthPark Circle, Fort Myers, FL 33908 or www.hopehospice.org. A memorial Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 am Saturday, March 3, 2018 at Our Lady of Light Catholic Community, 19680 Cypress View Dr., Fort Myers, FL 33967, 239-267-7088.Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Fort Myers Memorial Gardens Funeral Home, 1589 Colonial Blvd., Fort Myers, FL 33907, 239-936-0555.
What’s your fondest memory of Eileen?
What’s a lesson you learned from Eileen?
Share a story where Eileen's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Eileen you’ll never forget.
How did Eileen make you smile?