He is preceded in death by his wife Ann Cooney Graham, and son Gary Graham. He is survived by three children, Marilyn, James and Michael Graham and one granddaughter, Olina Graham.

Born in Oxnard on July 26, 1923, Gale was raised on the family lemon ranch in Ventura. He attended Pomona College for two years, then served from 1943 to 1946 in the Army, mostly as a radio technician in the Signal Corps in the Midwest. Following the war, he married Ann Cooney, his high school sweetheart, in 1946, settled on a small lemon ranch west of Santa Paula, and started a family. After farming for a few years, he began an additional career teaching 6th grade at Briggs Elementary School in 1958, and completed his B.A. at UC Santa Barbara in 1962.

At Briggs, he was known not just as a teacher, but as the pianist for the PTA's annual theater production called "Dads & Dolls." He often said that "We didn't realize it at the time, but these were the golden years of our lives." Gale found his life's career in 1967 with Glendale Federal Savings and Loan. He rose through the ranks as an appraiser, focusing on large commercial properties, and retired a senior vice president in 1991.

He was a great teacher, and enjoyed sharing his knowledge by teaching appraisal classes for the Society of Real Estate Appraisers and seminars in real estate math nationwide. When he retired from appraising in his 70's, Gale returned to farming, directing the construction of a new sprinkler system on the lemon ranch. He derived great satisfaction from doing a large part of the farming himself until less than a year ago. Gale had several life-long passions: First were his family, and his spiritual home, St. Paul's Episcopal Church.

His contributions there included fund-raising to build a new church in 1960, helping select new ministers, singing in the choir, picking up the donuts and opening the church on Sunday morning for decades. He was an avid golfer, organizing and playing in countless tournaments, both formal and informal.

His proudest achievement was winning the low gross score at the Glendale Federal golf tournament. And of course he loved music, playing in several jazz bands and at hundreds of local events. Many will warmly remember Gale's generous donations of time and talent playing the spirited, improvised music for which he was so well-known.

Gale was also active in boating as a longtime member of the Ventura Yacht Club. He flew small airplanes with his brother Calvin. He supported 4-H and Rotary, and served on the boards of the Briggs Lemon Association, Briggs Elementary School and Santa Paula High School. He and Ann enjoyed several Elderhostel trips during their retirement.

The family would like to thank Gale's caregivers, Dane Archer and Elsie Gonzalez, as well as the Hillview Estates community and countless family and friends (especially long-time friend Jane Marcus) who have offered loving support in the last few months. A memorial service followed by refreshments and reflections will be held at St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Sunday, January 9 at 2:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Santa Clara Valley Hospice, 133 N. Mill St., Santa Paula, CA 93060 or St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 117 N 7th St, Santa Paula, CA 93060-2615. You can reach the family by contacting Marilyn Graham, 530 Alameda del Prado 199, Novato, CA 94949 [email protected]

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by Ventura County Star from Jan. 5 to Jan. 8, 2011.

Memories and Condolences
for Gale Graham

7 Entries

Leila Castilho

January 11, 2011

Dad, Dad,... I´m your "extra daughter", and you have been my "Dad" and special friend all over these years, telephone calls, e-mails. I´ll miss you a whole lot and will pray for you ever.

Becky Sauceda

January 11, 2011

Gale was a great mentor to me while learning commercial appraising at Glendale Federal. Our Glendale Federal Appraisal Team was a family and I certainly do feel the loss. My prayers go out to the family.

Dane Archer

January 9, 2011

Gale and I created an almost instant "old buddies" friendship

Marla (Rasmussen) Cohn

January 6, 2011

Gale was a wonderful man. Early in my appraisal career I learned much from attending his classes and seeing him at Society events on occasion. A great man and mentor to many. My deepest condolences to the Graham family.

Stephen Chopp

January 6, 2011

I attended the old 102 appraisal class around 1982/83 that was taught by Gale and later an HP 12C seminar. Gale was was one of the greatest instructors I've ever had. He assisted a lot of young appraisers on their career paths, and I'm sure all of his former students, such as I, will be equally saddened on the passing of a legend in our industry.

Kioren Moss

January 5, 2011

Gale was a good guy. I learned a lot from him. And had a few laughs.

Maria Torres

January 5, 2011

Graham Family,
I would like to express my deepest sympathys to you. I had a nice relationship with Mr Graham & his wife during my time at SBBT. They would come to me and sit at my desk for assistance. I had very many talks with them and loved assisting them. Mr Graham spoke often of is golf game and playing his musical instruments. I will forever remember his stories. Mr & Mrs Graham were so adorable. God Bless your family. May God give you guidence with you loss.
Sincerely, Maria Torres.

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