John Thomas Gilligan 1948-2022 John Gilligan was born on April 1, 1948, and died of prostate cancer on November 29, 2022, at the age of 74. High school Friends remember his Irish good looks and his football prowess. He attended many class reunions over the years, including our 50th in 2016. A beautiful obituary was published in the Intelligencer newspaper at the time of his death. “John was the loving husband of Marion (Hoch) for 37 years. He was the father of Sean Gilligan and Charlene Popow, grandfather of Christian, Victoria and Logan, and great-grandfather of Isla. He was the devoted son of Jack and Virginia (O’Connell) Gilligan and a wonderful brother to his four sisters. John grew up in Hatboro and graduated from Hatboro Horsham High School. One of his favorite memories from high school was the time he had an exceptional run for a touchdown at Central Bucks High School and the local paper named the field for that game “Gilligan’s Island”. He enjoyed playing many other sports, including tennis, racquetball, billiards, and golf. His favorite football team was of course the Eagles! After graduation he entered the military service and was stationed in Berlin, Germany with the Corps of Engineers. In midlife John decided to change careers and attended college to become an R.N. He worked at Southampton Estates as a nurse manager of the Dementia and Alzheimer’s unit for 23 years. He won the national Joan Anne McHugh Award for leadership in long-term care nursing and received the President’s Award in recognition of his care and devotion to the residents. John was known for his laugh, quick wit, jokes, and stories. He was an avid reader and had his own library of over 500 books. He also loved listening to all types of music, but Elvis was his favorite singer. Recently, he and Marion were able to realize a lifelong dream to visit Graceland. His interest in the theater led him to usher at the Walnut Street Theater for 25 years. John cherished his family and friends and his dog Big Boy and will be missed by all who knew him. His faith in God never wavered and he is now with the Lord he loved.” His funeral service was held on December 3, 2022, after which he was buried at Whitemarsh Cemetery with a military honor guard at graveside. John’s family announced that donations to the American Cancer Society for research of Prostate Cancer at www.cancer.org would be appreciated.