Ruth Ann Higginbotham Gallagher

Ruth Ann Gallagher passed away peacefully on September 2, 2026, in Pensacola, Florida, after a long period of declining health. She was 88.

Ruth Ann was born and raised in Albany, Missouri, which remained her beloved hometown even as life took her to other states. She attended Albany R-III Schools, Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, and Central Methodist University in Fayetteville.

Ruth Ann was the daughter of John and Marie Higginbotham and the younger sister of Norman and Harlan Higginbotham. She was predeceased by her husband, Edward Gallagher. She is survived by her daughter, Lori Van Wagner (Brian); her son, David Rintel (Cindy); her grandchildren, Calvin, Christopher, Patricia (Adam), and John (Kalynn); and five great-grandchildren. She also deeply loved her nine stepchildren: Kevin (predeceased), Nancy Loughlin (Jeffrey), Richard (Alison), Patricia, Edward (Melinda), Thomas, Carol Brown (James), Christopher (Anne Marie), and Katherine (Robert), as well as fourteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Ruth Ann was a devoted Christian who joined a United Methodist church in every community she called home.

After college, Ruth Ann married and moved to New York. She later became a single mother at a young age, living in a city and an era when success was especially difficult for women. Still, she persevered. She studied at Hunter College, completing all but her dissertation for a doctorate, and taught special education in New York City. She later helped develop the Committee on the Handicapped within the New York City Department of Education and became its Assistant Director. After retiring following thirty years of service, she worked briefly at IBM before becoming a medical receptionist and biller, roles that reflected her love of technology and change.

By 1970, Ruth Ann had moved her family to Yonkers, New York, into a beautiful home she purchased on her own. She enjoyed decorating, entertaining, playing tennis, and traveling. A skilled seamstress, she spent many hours reupholstering, sewing, gardening, and playing the piano.

Ruth Ann and Edward Gallagher—known as Ann and Ed—married in 1996 and remained together until his death in 2017. They first met as neighbors in Yonkers, where their families became close friends. After Ed was widowed and Ann had moved to Mount Vernon, they reconnected years later. To their grandchildren, they were lovingly known as “Grannie Annie and Grandpa Ed.” Their grandchildren and great-grandchildren were the joys of their lives, and they were involved with them whenever possible.

Ann and Ed spent their later years in Cape Canaveral, Florida. After Ed passed away, she moved to Pensacola to be near Tricia and Adam. She loved the beach and her home, but she wanted and needed to be close to family.

Ruth Ann was generous, supporting many charities and causes. Quietly and often without others knowing, she would take single mothers under her wing and help them financially when she could.

At times, Ruth Ann seemed larger than life—always bright, always colorful. The aides who cared for her, and those who truly knew her, remember her smile and her kindness.

Memorial Service: 11:00 AM Saturday, October 3 at the Roberson-Polley Chapel, Albany. Inurnment will follow in the Grandview Cemetery, Albany. The family will receive friends 10:00 – 11:00 AM prior to the service on Saturday at the chapel. Memorial Contributions: in lieu of flowers, spark2ignite.com It is a learning center for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Online Condolences: www.robersonpolleychapel.com