Dale Patrick Gleason

Dale Patrick Gleason of Clovis, CA, passed away on Friday, April 26th at age 83. He was born on May 7, 1940, in Oakland, CA to mother, Dorothy Butterfield and father, Daniel Fogarty. Both his parents and his beloved Grandma Hazel Eckley, are deceased. Dale was loving husband to his wife Clary Gleason for 43 years. He was father/stepfather to Vianna Gleason, Catherine Malin, Karina Gleason, Karol Herra, Raul Herra, Diego Herra, Nancy George and Mike Marte. He was older brother to Debbie Kohler. He also recently discovered he had two half siblings, Danette Smith and Jim Fogarty who he had the pleasure of meeting in 2022.

Dale grew up in the Bay Area and had many great memories in San Francisco, Oakland and Hayward. In his thirties he moved to Marin county where he and his then wife had one daughter. They moved to Sebastopol shortly after and he was able to buy a home and try his hand at farming. He successfully raised chickens, turkeys, pigs, cows and many fresh vegetables from their large gardens. After his divorce in 1982, Dale moved to Costa Rica where he met his wife, Clary. Shortly thereafter, the couple returned to California with their new twin baby girls and Dale's new step daughter and two step sons. In 1999, Dale returned with his wife back to her home country of Costa Rica, spending many happy years. In 2015, they returned to the states for good.

Dale had a long career as a Merchant Marine from 1955 to 1996, starting at the young age of 15. He loved the adventure and excitement of this career path but often said it got lonely later in life. Dale was a person who thrived on change and variety in life. Over the years, he pursued various "land" jobs. To name some, he worked as a waiter, bartender, cab driver, tour guide, insurance salesman, apple cannery supervisor, health food store owner, and landscaper. He even attended Beauty school in his early twenties but dropped out.

Dale was known for his adventurous spirit, charismatic personality and zest for life. He was a free spirit, with an open-mind and passion to live his best life - on his own terms. Dale loved watching a good movie, especially at the theater with buttered popcorn and candy. He loved socializing and was an amazing host to friends and family when they came to visit. In his later years, he liked to watch CNN and movies on Netflix. He was an avid music lover, especially of songs and artists from the sixties and seventies. Some of his favorites were Pink Floyd, Queen, The Doors, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac and many many more.

A celebration of life is being planned for the near future. At Dale's request, his close family will spread his ashes in the San Francisco Bay.

Dale or Pat, as some called him, will be missed by all who knew him but most deeply by his close family. They loved him very much. He will forever be in their hearts.