My Family Tree

Mary Jane Shurr Gall

ORONO - Jane was a talented and giving woman. She was driven by her passions for music, service and family. What others might convey through words, Jane expressed through her works. It was through her labors of love that she spoke her truth. In the pharmacy, in the church, in the community, and in the home, M. Jane Shurr Gall was a woman of quiet and unyielding service.

Mary Jane Shurr Gall was born in Minot, North Dakota, the daughter of Frederick John Shurr and Helen Chatfield Shurr. She was the youngest of five children and proceeded in death by all of her siblings: Hazel Shurr O'Connell, Agnes Shurr, Harriet Shurr and Raymond Shurr.

She grew up on her family farm near Glenburn, North Dakota during the Great Depression. She loved listening to music on the radio and the family Victrola. She also recited poetry with her mother and shared this with her children as they grew up. Education was a priority for Jane's family and she endured many hardships, including boarding with others during her younger years, to complete her education. She earned her degree in Pharmacy from North Dakota State University where she met and married her husband, Arthur Gall.

Jane had three loves' in her life: love of music, of service, and of family. It was these gifts and passions that permeated every aspect of her life and the lives of those that she touched.

At Christmas Eve services in Methodist churches in Center, ND, Fargo, ND, and Orono, ME you would hear Jane singing "O Holy Night", proudly, for her church community. She was a member of the church choirs at the Orono and Stillwater Methodist churches for most of her life. Jane was a member of a women's barbershop quartet called "The Mothers Four" with her close friends Barbara Smith, Carol Reynolds, and Lois Johnson. They performed in the Bangor/Orono area for many years. Jane also enlisted her family to perform with her at local events. She instilled her love of music in all of her children.

Jane Gall served as a pharmacist in North Dakota and in Maine. Many Orono residents relied on Jane for advice about their health issues and their medications. After her retirement she continued her service as a volunteer at the "Living History Days" at Leonards Mills in Milford Maine. She donned her colonial attire and demonstrated making lye soap and candles. Beyond traditional work, she shared the bounty of her husband's garden and her quilting room with her family and community. She sewed most of her three daughter's clothing while they were growing up as well as clothing for all of her eleven grandchildren and their dolls. Every member of her family has a handmade quilt on their beds created by Jane. One year she crafted paraments for every liturgical season for the Orono United Methodist Church. Her hand made creations still adorn the churches and homes for which they were created.

Jane's greatest loves were her late husband, Arthur Gall of 63 years, her children, grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren. She was a resident of Orono, Maine for nearly 50 years. She is survived by Brenda and Richard Angotti of Millinocket, Maine, Karol and Robert Wollenburg of New York, New York, Dean and Elaine Gall of Christiansburg, Virginia, and Fae Nason of Shrewsbury Massachusetts. She was a wonderful and loving grandmother to Giovanni Angotti, Melissa Barton, Mario Angotti, Damaris Maclean, Matthew Wollenburg, Stephan Wollenburg, Evan Gall, Tyler Gall, Joshua Nason, Benjamin Nason and Paul Nason and her five great grandchildren.

She will be missed by her children and grandchildren, who seek to carry on her legacy for service, music, and family. A memorial service for Jane will be held at 11:00AM on Saturday June 11th, 2016 at the Orono United Methodist Church, 36 Oak St., Orono.

Bangor Daily News Maine - Bangor, ME – 8 Jun 2016