Louis S. Gagliardi

02/20/2004

Louis S. Gagliardi, a local Realtor and businessman who was active in community affairs, died yesterday at the Mayflower Rehabilitation Center in Plymouth following a brief illness. Mr. Gagliardi, who had lived at 56 East Ave., was 85. Born in North Adams on March 24, 1918, son of Pasquale and Carmela Astorino Gagliardi, he attended schools in North Adams and graduated from Drury High School in 1937. He graduated from Hartwick College in Oneonta, N.Y., with a bachelor's degree in history and government with a minor in English. Mr. Gagliardi also obtained real estate certification from Lee Institute of Real Estate. He was an Army veteran of World War II, completing officer candidate school at Fort Knox, Ky. He served in Europe with the 709th Tank Battalion, where he attained the rank of captain. He participated in the Normandy invasion and the Hurtgen Forest campaign. He received several medals and commendations. From 1945 to 1946, he served as an Army civil affairs officer in Bavaria. After retiring, Mr. Gagliardi joined Century 21 Harold Dupee Realtors as head of the commercial division. In 1948, Mr. Gagliardi established the former Gagliardi Inc. on Union St., and operated the business with his partner, Irving Collins, until selling it in 1981. In 1964, he also established the former Gagliardi & Collins Realty Associates, and was instrumental in bringing the first McDonald's to North Adams. Immediately following the war, he joined the Drury High School faculty as a civics teacher. Mr. Gagliardi was an active community leader, serving nine years as a trustee on the North Adams Public Library, two years on the North Adams City Council. He also served as president of the North Adams Rotary Club, and in 1980 received the Rotary's Paul Harris Fellowship Award. He served as president of the Northern Berkshire YMCA and the Northern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce. He served as president and campaign chairman of the Northern Berkshire United Way. He was active in the Northern Berkshire Industrial Development Corp. and was a member of the North Adams Country Club in Clarksburg. Mr. Gagliardi was a member of the First Congregational Church, where he served on numerous church committees, and a longtime member of the Frank R. Stiles Post 125 American Legion. He leaves his wife of 57 years, Margaret Geddes Gagliardi, whom he married March 24, 1946, in New York City. Besides his wife, he leaves two daughters, Margaret McKane of West Barnstable and Elizabeth Carmichael of Kennesaw, Ga., and three grandchildren. FUNERAL NOTICE -- Funeral services to celebrate the life of Louis S. Gagliardi, who died Feb. 20, 2004, will be Monday at 2 at the FLYNN & DAGNOLI-MONTAGNA HOME FOR FUNERALS, West Chapels, 521 West Main St., with the Rev. Jill Graham, pastor of the First Congregational Church, officiating. Burial will take place Tuesday at 1 at the Bourne National Cemetery in Bourne. Calling hours at the funeral home are Sunday from 4 to 7. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations are suggested for the Northern Berkshire YMCA, the North Adams Public Library or the North Adams Rotary Club through the funeral home. Survivors include two sons-in-law, Paul McKane and Peter Carmichael; three grandchildren, David Carmichael, Caron McKane Sharp and Elizabeth McKane Sweeney, and several nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. He was predeceased by three brothers, Pasquale "Babe" Gagliardi, Thomas J. Gagliardi and Ferdinand Gagliardi, and two sisters, Philomena DelNegro and Evelyn Kittler.

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