Michael Joseph Gallagher Jr.

Michael J. Gallagher Jr., known to friends and family as Bubba, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by family on Friday the 12th of December, 2025 after navigating a challenging journey with osteosarcoma. He had just celebrated his 68th birthday on the 4th of December at his home in Wasilla, Alaska.
Mike was born in Long Beach, California in 1957 to Paula Osborne and Michael Joseph Gallagher Sr., and grew up with his two sisters Rhonda Joyner and Sandra Gallagher. He loved going scuba diving on the coast of Southern California and Baja Mexico with Dan George and all of their buddies. He lived in Kona for a short time where he was able to enjoy the ocean waters of Hawaii. Mike was a hard worker, starting with construction at a young age working in various parts of California, then eventually joining the carpenter's union. He resided in California with his family before moving to Alaska where he attended Bartlett and Service High School. After graduating, he worked on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, volunteered as a ski patroller at Alyeska Ski Resort, and attended the University of Alaska.
He resided in Alaska for several years before moving back to Long beach in his twenties, where he met the love of his life, Beatrice Gallagher. They dated for a couple of years and got married in California before moving back to Anchorage, Alaska in 1982 where he started a family and construction business, MG Construction. Mike and Bea had their first child in 1983, Michael A. Gallagher, and then had a second child in 1985, Monica B. Gallagher. Mike loved Alaska, enjoying the outdoors with activities like hiking, mountain biking, skiing, ice climbing, rock climbing, fishing, and hunting.
Bubba also had a green thumb for gardening throughout his life and turned his medicinal hobby into a business after retiring from construction. His passion for cultivation and working with his family, his old time buddy Dan, and "the girls" gave him fulfillment and purpose during his final years, before his eventual cancer diagnosis. He fought the disease with all his strength and determination for three years, alongside the support of his family and friends.
Mike will be remembered as a kind soul, with a fun-loving spirit, who was always ready to tell a joke or play a prank. Bubba had a knack for creating endearing, and sometimes questionable, nicknames for friends and family. His playful spirit was balanced by his desire to help anyone in need with his knowledge, skills, and experience. He was the "go-to guy" for any Mr. Fix-It problems. Being a hard worker and a giving person was just how he lived his life, rarely asking for anything in return. He was also the type to play hooky on a good snow day. He loved listening to everything from NPR to classic rock, like Led Zeppelin and Frank Zappa. While he loved many things, caring for his family was most important to him. Mike cherished his wife Bea and loved to get his "little sweetheart" coffee in the mornings. These little things, among many others, will be remembered and missed.
In keeping with Mike's wishes, there will not be a public service, he wasn't much for traditional funerals, but we do appreciate your love and support during this difficult time. To honor Mike, consider paying it forward by helping a friend, family member, or neighbor, just like he would have, and of course, the next time you're out and about, raise a glass to celebrate his life.
Mike is succeeded by his wife Beatrice Gallagher and their beloved doodle Sadie, his children, Michael A. Gallagher and Monica B. Gallagher, his mother-in-law Esperanza Murietta, his father Michael J. Gallagher Sr., his half-sister Renee Gallagher, his uncle Stuart Sharkey, his sister Sandra Gallagher, his nieces, Becky Gallagher and her children, Amanda Draeger and her son, his nephew-in-law Carl Vandermeer and his children, his brother-in-law Mitch Joyner, his nieces and nephews, Christine Nisbett and her children, Sarah Joyner, and Jackson Joyner, his brother-in-law Richard Murietta and wife Maria and their sons Allen and Daniel, his brother-in-law Ernie Murietta and wife Griselda and their daughter Brittany, his nieces Elise Harrelson and Shiloh Phillips, and many other extended family throughout Alaska, Washington, and California. He's also succeeded by some of his long time friends Roy Cappadona, Dan George, Steve Voth, Peggy Brown, and many others.
Family members and friends that preceded Mike's death include his mother Paula Braun and his stepfather Don Braun, his sister Rhonda Gallagher, his father-in-law Marco Antonio Murietta, his brother-in-law Tony Murietta, his sister-in-law Patricia Harrelson, his niece Melissa Vandermeer, his long time friend Ron Brown, and his long time friend Gary "Buzz" George.
If anyone would like to reach out to the family directly for condolences or to share pictures/ videos, please email mgbuilders@gmail.com, and please feel free to share a memory on the online obituary as well. It will be heartwarming and uplifting to hear stories about Mike.
Thank you in advance for your thoughts and prayers, and heartfelt hugs to all of Mike's friends, family, and neighbors.