Galen Fletcher Gawboy, 51, of Lexington, Massachusetts, passed away on Saturday, July 6, unexpectedly yet peacefully at his home.

Galen was born in Cloquet, Minnesota on November 20, 1961, to James Walter and Kathleen Marie (Bepko-Puumala) Gawboy. He grew up in Meadowlands, Pineville and Aurora. Galen graduated from Aurora-Hoyt Lakes High School in 1980, as a National Merit Scholar and much-lettered athlete. He was a member of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa.

Galen was a mathematician at heart. He graduated from Harvard University in 1984 with a Bachelor of Chemistry degree. From there he went to Columbus, Ohio, where he pursued quantum chemistry, which is a combination of chemistry and math. He was recruited away from his doctoral studies in Chemical Physics at Ohio State University in 1996 to begin a career in software engineering.

Galen always liked
new challenges, he never stopped learning. His excellence in mathematics made his career blossom in the computer industry over two decades. He was a principal software engineer at Compuware, Stream Base, Kalido, Cylant Inc., PTC and PNT. His specialty was to design and implement elegant solutions to challenging problems. He designed and developed APM portal back end; developed parallel processing engine; developed application software for both server and client sides of window bases product. He is the inventor of a US patent issued in 2009 for "System and Method for Providing Dynamic Client Architecture in an Application Development Environment."


Galen also had many hobbies. Throughout his childhood and life, he excelled in music, fishing and athletics. He enjoyed swimming until one week before he died.

Galen was preceded in death by his mother Kathleen Gawboy and daughter Amy Gawboy.

Galen had great love for his children and his family. He is survived by his loving wife, Wei Lu Gawboy, Lexington MA; daughter Paula Gawboy, Ely; daughter Meili Gawboy, Lexington MA; father James (Becky) Gawboy, Tower; siblings Linden (Mick Kelly), J.T., Ann, Shawn, Miranda, Jordan, Tim, Naomi, Desmond, Jasmine, Juanita, Isaac, Roger and Lorenzo Gawboy, of Ely, Soudan and Tower; and many aunts, uncles and cousins.

Services have been held. Cards and memorials can be sent to the Gawboy Family, P.O. Box 687, Ely, MN 55731.