Cover photo for Jon Paul Galley's Obituary
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1944 Jon 2019

Jon Paul Galley

January 3, 1944 — June 30, 2019

Jon Paul Galley, 75, of Hagerstown, MD, passed away at 6:10am on June 30, 2019. He was born January 3, 1944 in Meyersdale, PA, to the late Paul Leopold Galley (nee Gallez) and Helen Niner Galley and lived in a Pennsylvania neighborhood known as Maple Glen. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his grand dogs; "Monty", his daughter's yellow lab and "Boone", (his buddy), his son's boxer.
He was a 1961 graduate of Salisbury Elk Lick High School, a 1965 graduate of Frostburg State University, a 1969 graduate of Shippensburg State University in Shippensburg, PA with an M.S. in Counseling, a 1972 graduate of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale Ill with an M.S. in the Administration of Justice.
He is survived by his wife Marilyn of over 52 years; a daughter, Adrienne Gossert and husband Michael of Mechanicsburg, PA; a son, Paul Galley and wife Marlene of Washington, D.C.; and grandchildren, Lauren Campbell Gossert, Jon Matthew Gossert and Lucien Leopold Galley. A brother, Gary R. Galley of Broadway, NC and a sister, Donna Hayes of Chambersburg, PA, also survive him.
He was a career employee of the Maryland prison service at both the state and county level. In 1979 he was promoted to Warden at Maryland Correctional Training Center and achieved the position of Commissioner of Corrections in 1981. He returned to the position of Warden at Roxbury Correctional Institution in 1984 and often verbalized that being a Warden was his favorite position of all. He served as Warden of the Montgomery County Detention Center in Rockville, MD. He retired from Montgomery County in 1998 and served as Chief of Security at the Frederick County Detention Center in Frederick, MD.
He returned to state service in 1999 as Warden at the Western Correctional Institution in Cumberland. He was promoted to Assistant Commissioner and ended his career as Executive Regional Director responsible for the oversight of seven prisons and seventeen parole offices retiring in November 2013. Many of the policies, procedures, and programs in the prison system bear his fingerprints. Among those were the introduction of social workers to prison staff, unit management, road crews, a system of emergency management, and the K-9 unit.
He mentored many of the staff who were promoted in the Corrections service in Maryland. He was an auditor for the national prison accreditation program for over 40 years, auditing prisons for accreditation across the country. He was a member of the first accreditation team to audit an adult prison in the accreditation process. He had the first prison accredited in Maryland.
Growing up, his lifelong ambition was to become a military fighter pilot. He qualified for Navy flight training while in college and enlisted in the U.S. Navy, later transferring to the Air Force. While in college he contracted a flight disqualifying illness and was medically discharged from the military.
He was a 49 year member of the Medairy Masonic Lodge in Williamsport, MD, the Scottish Rite Masons of Frederick and Baltimore, and the Ali Ghan Shrine in Cumberland, Maryland. He was a four term Worshipful Master of Mediary Lodge and Secretary for over 40 years. He also coached scores of new members in the Masonic catechisms.
He was a member of John Wesley United Methodist Church in Hagerstown. One of his favorite pastimes was working in his yard and, as his wife says, buying shrubs without a place to put them and his quest to grow a red crepe myrtle. He was an avid Dallas Cowboy and Washington Nationals Fan.
The family will receive friends at the Rest Haven Funeral Home, 1601 Pennsylvania Ave., Hagerstown, MD on Friday, July 12, from 1-4pm and 6-8pm. Medairy Masonic Lodge #140, A.F. & A.M. will conduct a Masonic Memorial service at 7:00pm on Friday, July 12, at the funeral home.
Memorial services will be held at 11:00am on Saturday, July 13, 2019 at the funeral home with Rev. Katie O'Hern Hamilton and Rev. Patrick Ricker officiating. Inurnment will follow in Rest Haven Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Shriners Children's Hospitals, 2900 Rocky Point Dr., Tampa, FL 33607 or online at donate.lovetotherescue.org.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.rsthvn.com.
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