Roy Gallegos, Sr.

Roy Gallegos Sr. 83, of Gurnee, IL passed away, Sunday, August 30, 2026 surrounded by his children and grandchildren.

He was born Sunday July 4,1943 in Waukegan, Illinois

Roy is preceded in death by his wife Gloria, parents Joseph and Mary Gallegos, brothers Angelo,Tom, Steven, Anthony, & Albert, sisters Gloria and Esther. 

Roy was married to the love of his life Gloria for 50 years until she gained her wings. Surviving them are their children Michael (Ava) Gallegos of Gurnee, IL daughters Cathleen Young & Sharon Gallegos of Gurnee,IL, Ginny (Brian) Ericksen of Ridgeland,MS Roy also had two other children from a previous union Roy Jr (Chris) Gallegos of Clinton,WI, Kerry Kirkland of Elkhorn,WI. 

To cherish his memory are his last two surviving sisters Marcella (Ed) Martinez of Montrose, CA & Diana Kennedy of Racine,WI. 

Roy leaves behind many treasured memories, foundational wisdom, and shall be forever bonded with his grandchildren even in eternity Lucas his #1, Caitlin his spanish speaking niña, Karmella Jean his “baby” who not only held his hand but his heart. Karmella and “pa-pa” held such a profound bond filled with pure love, it was almost magical. His grandchildren Peter Michael, Michelle, & J.J. each held a special place in his heart in their own individual ways. Roy's legacy shall carry on within his children,their children and all of his great grandchildren. Roy was a nurturing uncle to many nieces and nephews as he treated them as if they were his own. 

Find comfort in knowing that Roy, although departed from the godly earth, is now truly at peace back in the arms of Gloria forever and ever amen. 

Roys Memorial Visitation will be held Sunday September 20, 2026 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM at Symonds Lakes Funeral Home located at 111 W. Belvidere Rd. Grayslake, IL 60030, interment will be held private, for additional information please contact the funeral home 847-543-1080  

In lieu of flowers the family is accepting donations for the memorial services. Please make checks payable to Virginia Ericksen with the memo of Roy Gallegos Sr. memorial fund. 

In Roy’s honor there will be a self-pay memorial dinner at Tacos El Norte located 401 N. Riverside Drive Suite 27 Gurnee,Il 60031 at 5:45 p.m. 

No photography, livestreaming or videos will be permitted on the premises 

Roy met the love of his life Gloria through his sister Diana as the two of them were best friends throughout high school and life. The couple moved to Coal City and created many cherished memories with his Comadre Helen, Goddaughter Rosemary and the rest of the Salazar family. Roy resided in Coal City for over 20 years with Gloria and their children before moving to Gurnee where he lived out the remainder of his life. 

Roy accomplished many things throughout his life, as a young boy he began working at 13 years old delivering newspapers before school, working at the local grocery store & gas stations ,Louie's in Waukegan being a pinsetter at the local bowling alley, working at the local furniture store. Roy was a man of many trades and skills he was a good cook, a grill master and was very proud of his famous spaghetti. (People always would stop by to get a plate when they heard he was cooking it. ) He also enjoyed swimming, playing pool, making homemade popcorn for the family, classic cars, custom furniture making and woodworking, gardening, playing cards & dominos, working in his garage with the radio blasting, picnics on the deck and spending time with his wife Gloria, his children & grandchildren. Roy was a die hard fan of the Chicago Cubs, Chicago Bulls, Da Bears & Championship Boxing he always enjoyed family night even if it was just a monopoly game at the table with the family. (which he always won) throughout his life Roy truly accomplished many things he was a member of the band “The Citations”, played baseball, was a skilled automotive mechanic who loved working on classic cars, was a skilled woodworking craftsman, iron steel welding fabricator, mechanical maintenance engineer, mathematical genius and grillmaster. Roy was very proud of many of his accomplishments. Roy manufactured tiles made for the space shuttle, built the walls of lake county jail ( if you look closely you will find his name embedded within the bars of the facility) proudly served as the Union president for A.P. Green Refractories for many years, was the director of fabrication at Johnson Fireproof doors, worked at Kays Fabrication in North Chicago,as well as several multifamily housing industries before his final job working at Pembrook Club Apartments as a dedicated maintenance technician alongside his son-in-law Brian. 

Roy a devoted husband to his soulmate Gloria, a fiercely protective,caring & loving father to his children and a playful, lighthearted & silly grandpa to his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He held many names: Roy, Dad, Pop, the old man ( he didn’t necessarily love that one),Grandpop,Abuelo,Pa-Pa,Grandpa and Superman. He wore a cape for all of them.

He was our hero, our knight in shining armor, King of the castle, Patriarch of the family,our father and friend.  

Throughout his life Roy showed us all not only through words but actions about how to love unconditionally the importance of integrity,loyalty,dignity,respect and what it meant to be a family.

Roy was a man that built himself from the ground up. He always put his family's needs before his own and would be the first to help someone in need. Roy through his actions showed us what it meant to be a man,a son, a brother,a husband, a father, a grandfather,an uncle,a godfather and a friend. Throughout his lifelong marriage to Gloria we learned what true love,dedication and devotion meant in a marriage he taught us, what a husband should be, what a father can be and what a grandpop is meant to be.

Roy was a man who loved our mother deeply, held her until her last breath and honored her in eternity. Roy was a true romantic at heart and always showed our mother love and compassion. He was her popeye and her his olive oil. Every birthday, anniversary or special occasion he would surprise her with flowers and candy, and a handwritten card with heartfelt words between the pages and made sure she knew she was “still the one”. As our father he made every birthday special, provided for our family and cherished the holidays. Dad built our toys if they didn’t create them or he stood in line for hours just to wait for them. He never stopped doing for his family as he grew older he just a little slower. Roy always said he was lucky for his family and that may be true but Roy what you didn’t know is we were lucky to have you. 

Some of Roy’s favorite memories were the moments he spent with his children. He cherished the time spent with his son Michael when they would have coffee together and shoot the sh*t as friends and not just father and son.the many treasured conversations about UFO’s, politics, their favorite shows (Choot em) and life. Roy and Michael were exclusive members of the “boys club” where they would speak Spanish and no one else could participate.

Roy and Cathee would have their sports reviews of the games from the night before or talk about how bad the next draft pick is, sharing stories of the night and life's real life moments with Sharon and all the crazy that went with it while enjoying his newspaper and eclair. Roy looked forward to the surprise packages that would be sent by Ginny filled with homemade baked goods for him just because. Roy truly enjoyed all of life's moments like sharing tips with Jr for his woodworking projects and supporting Kerry in her times of need.  

Roy had many valued relationships but there was one friendship and brotherhood that literally lasted his lifetime.The camaraderie between Roy and his primo Alex Gonzales was undeniable. Roy truly loved, treasured, valued and respected Alex he was not only his primo but his best friend.  

Roy was and remains a loved and respected member of the Gallegos family whose legacy is larger than life for a life well lived. People would always say you always knew when Roy and his family arrived as you would hear the crowd bellow “ Hey, Roy’s here! “ Everyone was always happy to see him and his family as people used to say how genuine hearted he was. 

He was a man who was proud of his parents, loved his siblings, protected his family, and will always be “still the one” to his heavenly wife Gloria. 

Roy will be remembered as a “firecracker baby” that had “wow” tattooed on his hand, helped his family when called and held his loved ones close to his heart.You Roy were a wonderful and loving father, a devoted husband, and unwavering friend. Roy ( Dad) as you look down from heaven know you were and shall forever be loved, appreciated and missed. There is only one Roy Sr. and he was the greatest. 

So friends and family near and far remember when you hear that Mexican mariachi music playing along with a warm summer breeze, the smell of fresh barbecue,fresh cut wood,burning iron and the sounds of the pow wow as a woman who cries out popeye you made it! The sound his mother who speaks softly and says” I’m still here with a little girl by her side, his father who says ‘My boys will do it” a brother who greets him with a milkshake in hand, as the other boys have held his spot at the card table and a very special one who has been waiting forever to see him ”later on“ and his baby sister who says to him “Welcome to heaven you firecracker baby” 

Roys asks you to be at peace. That is just the welcome parade for Dad who has made it to heaven and gained his wings to be our guided angel for eternity. 

Life is meant to be made of moments. Moments of joy, moments of pain. Moments of sorrow, moments of happiness. We are grateful for every single one of those moments we had with you. 

Take peace in knowing Roy is home…… home with his family that have waited so long for him home together again with his wife Gloria who waited so patiently for her popeye to arrive. Home with his father, his mother, his brothers and sisters, cousins and friends who are all going to celebrate him. Roy is home right where he needs to be in his eternal life back in the arm of Gloria forever and ever amen. 

Fly high Superman. You'll always be our hero. 

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