Heriberto Gallego

Heriberto "Herb" Gallego, age 75 of Escondido California, left us all on November 24, 2024. He is survived by his wife Ellen who he was with for 48 years; His daughter Christa and her husband Ben, his son Naithan and his wife Ashleigh, and his grandsons Xavier, Connor, Julian, Cruz, and Nico. He is also survived by his mother Judith - incredibly still with us at age 103 - who we are sure would like to have some words with him for leaving before her.

Born in Buenaventura Colombia, as one of ten children Herb is also survived by his brothers Gustavo, Armando, Gilbert and sisters Gladys, Patricia, and Helen. He is preceded in death by his father Gerardo, his brothers Jairo, Luis and sister Damarys "Marcy".

Herb grew up in Cali Colombia, where his mother usually found him dancing in the rain, climbing palm trees, and selling fireworks to local village children. He was consistently late for dinner for "tarde deportivas" and loved playing soccer, sunbathing, and pulling pranks on his siblings. As a teenager, Herb loved his Dodge Dart, working as a roadie for Bob Seger, and wearing collared shirts he left open to his navel.

An irresistible charmer, Herb met his wife Ellen at The Beachcomber in San Diego where he claimed to be from New York City. Even though Herb was seven years younger than Ellen and never wore socks, they were married in November of 1979. So began a legacy of legendary Herb and Ellen stories.

Herb was a stranger to no one. He left all conversations on a first name basis with everyone he met. He was kind and curious and made whomever he was speaking with the most important person in the room.

He loved gardening, fishing, knives, rice and beans, skipping the run portion of competitive triathlons, shooting guns, visiting Winston the gorilla at Safari Park (he was also on a first name basis with animals), children, bird watching, Colombia, music, Steven Segal, cooking, soccer, biking, dancing cumbia, fireworks, and above all he loved his family.

After 30+ years, Herb retired from a proud career in medical instrument production and sales. He spent his retirement shooting gophers from his back deck that tormented his garden, making machetes, and cleaning his fishing reels.

He was a lover of magic and infamous distributor of mini ice cream cones to his grandsons. He frequently pulled dimes from ears, tissues from nostrils, and pennies from closed fists with a "sople" and a smile.

We give our heartfelt thanks to the staff and nurses at Palomar Hospital who did everything possible to save Herb's life. Unfortunately for us, it was just his time to go. In his own words "Everyone here has been so beautiful."

Services for Heriberto Gallego will be held on January 10th at St. Therese Of Carmel Catholic Church at 10am. 4355 Del Mar Trails Rd, San Diego, CA 92130.

A memorial bench will be placed in Herb's name at the Safari Park he so loved. In lieu of flowers, donations toward the memorial bench are being collected by the family. Please visit this page to learn more: https://www.classy.org/fundraiser/5975123.

To share a wonderful memory of Herb or for questions about the memorial, please email herbgallegomemories@gmail.com.