Maureen "Mo" Gallagher Jensen

Maureen “Mo” Gallagher Jensen was born as an identical twin on October 1, 1954 in Eugene, Oregon. She liked the designation “7 of 7” (from Star Trek). As the youngest in the family with 6 siblings, Mo’s summers were busy with picking strawberries, cherries, and beans to buy school clothes. She and Mary Lou graduated from Marist High School in 1972. When Mo was in her late 20’s and early 30’s she was a competitive body builder and won “Best Poser” in the Miss Sacramento contest. She later moved to Los Angeles and worked out at the original Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach. Mo was a MOtivated DynaMO!! Mo loved to cook, grow flowers and indoor plants, do canning, and decorate the house. She loved the special “peeps” in her family and regularly bought them quality items at the thrift stores where she so enjoyed shopping. Mo was so generous of her time and talents it would be impossible to list them all here. She made a difference in many peoples’ lives. Just nine months after they were married on October 3, 1992, Mo & Brooks were living in Portland, Oregon when they founded a magazine on fine art photography titled “LensWork.” During the next 27 years their “baby” grew to be an internationally recognized publication with subscribers in over 70 countries. Brooks is preparing a memorial tribute to his cherished wife in the upcoming issue, #150. Mo loved to sequence the photos in the magazines and photo books they have produced. She was also very talented at writing the bios for the photographers whose work was submitted for publication from around the world. (See www.lenswork.com) Maureen & Brooks then lived in Anacortes for 18 years from 2000 – 2018. In her “spare” time, Mo founded New Life Christian Thrift Store that was located in the building on Commercial Street with the big ice cream cone on the side. More than $10,000 from sales was given to Christian organizations in the area that needed funds to do their important work with kids, people living on the streets, and others. Mo absolutely loved doing this work but was forced to give it up when she started chemotherapy. Ten years ago Mo was diagnosed with very rare Granulosa Cell Tumor (GCT) ovarian cancer. She credited Dr. Nick Chen at Seattle Integrative Cancer Center in Renton with saving her life after standard cancer chemotherapies made her quality of life unbearable and she was going to quit. Mo’s husband, Brooks, was the best “wingman” ever and did all he could for her during those years when she was so sick at times. Two years ago Maureen “Mo” (Gallagher) & Brooks Jensen moved from Anacortes to Lynden along with Mo’s newly widowed identical twin sister, Mary Lou Gallagher Childs. The sisters loved to plan home improvement and landscaping projects together at their home at the corner of Aaron Drive & Cherry. This summer they planted 12 raised bed gardens on their corner lot, then opened it up for neighbors to pick any of the flowers or veggies. It made Mo so happy to see kids and moms walking around looking for something to pick. Mo especially enjoyed shopping at thrift stores, where she was always looking for something to buy for family or friends. Last year, 65 year old Mo and Mary Lou bought blingy dresses and dressed up as fairy godmothers to hand out Halloween candy! Mo absolutely loved Lynden and the people. She could not have been happier during the last two years of her life. Thank you all for that gift to her and God bless you all! Mo was a strong believer in Jesus and declared in the hospital, “I am going ‘home’ tonight. It’s going to be glorious!” On the evening of September 15, 2020 Mo’s spirit and soul passed from her suffering body into God’s glory. Husband Brooks and twin sister Mary Lou were at her side when she quietly took her last breath at Whatcom Hospice House in Bellingham, Washington. Mo received the most compassionate care possible there. Mo would have been just 66 years on October 1st but felt she’d had a good long life. She said she never aspired to grow old. She wanted to have her body wrapped in a white bamboo linen shroud for a “green burial” at The Meadow at Moles cemetery in Ferndale, WA. The burial will take place on Sept. 25th for family members and very close friends. “I Can Only Imagine” was her favorite song and it will be played. Loved ones will close her grave, pausing for readings of her favorite scriptures, then the top 2 – 3 feet will be mounded with shredded bark. This will be decorated with 14 bird nests, special sticks, and other natural items that Mo found along life’s road and that were sentimental to her. Mo is the daughter of Dan & Sue (Heide) Gallagher who predeceased her, as did her brother, Kevin Gallagher. She is survived by her husband, Brooks Jensen, and by her twin sister Mary Lou (Gallagher) Childs of Lynden, Washington; two “chosen” (Brooks’) daughters, Tiffany and Rhiannon; 3 grandkids (Ryan, Lauren, and Noah); sister Patricia (Larry) Hilliard of Mt. Vernon, WA, and brothers John (Trish) Gallagher of Lacey, WA; Tom (Cheri) of Independence, Oregon, and Mark (Libby) Gallagher of Klamath Falls, Oregon; also many much-loved nieces, nephews, and their kids. Mo was deeply grateful to the pilots of Angel Flight West who donated flights to take her from Lynden/Bellingham to Renton and home again because it was such a hardship on her to ride in a car for many hours. Memorial gifts may be sent in honor of Maureen Gallagher Jensen to Angel Flight West or to Whatcom Hospice House in Bellingham. Both are non-profit organizations.

Maureen "Mo" Gallagher Jensen

October 1, 1954 - September 15, 2020