Sad News

We are sad to report the death of Don Gallehr.  Don founded and directed the Northern Virginia Writing Project for 40 years and taught in the English Department for 55 years.  He retired from George Mason University in 2019.

Please read Don's obituary below.  He is much beloved by his students and colleagues and will be greatly missed. 

Donald Raymond Gallehr, 84, passed away on March 7, 2026 at his home in Warrenton, Virginia. Don was born on November 20, 1941 and was raised with his three siblings, Joan Winslow, Barbara Slank, and Richard Gallehr, in Walden, New York. He attended St. Bonaventure University and was working on his graduate studies at Fordham University in 1966 when he accepted a job at the University of Virginia’s satellite campus in Fairfax, Virginia, which later became George Mason University. He finished his PhD at Catholic University while he was teaching at GMU.

Don founded the Northern Virginia Writing Project in 1977, which focuses on teaching teachers to use writing in their classrooms, and served as its Director for more than 40 years. He also served as the Co-Director of the National Writing Project, which aimed to bring the project to universities across the country. He successfully lobbied Congress and was able to secure funding for the National Writing Project. Over the course of his 55 years at GMU, Don taught writing and literature courses to more than 11,000 students – not counting all the teachers that he instructed over the NVWP’s summer institute. He taught writing workshops at corporations and government agencies and taught summer programs at universities in Great Britain and Hong Kong. Don published two books, "Finished Business: Taking Care of a Loved One With a Terminal Illness," and “Be Gentle” and authored hundreds of publications. He is the 2008 recipient of GMU’s Teaching Excellence Award, as well as the David J. King Award which honors significant contributions for educational excellence at GMU.

In addition to teaching, Don practiced meditation on a daily basis and it was a central part of his life. When the Dalai Lama was looking for a writing teacher for his monks, he contacted the National Writing Project, which sent him to Don, who was well-known for incorporating meditation into the writing process. In 2010, he had the honor of teaching 33 Buddhist monks in a monthlong workshop in northern India.

Don and his first wife, Diana Batch Gallehr, met at St. Bonaventure University and raised their three children in Warrenton, Virginia on High Steet in an old turn of the century house that they purchased in 1975. Don spent countless hours renovating the house – he was always perched on a ladder painting the siding, the tin roof, or the porches. Don loved spending time with his kids and their friends and regularly hosted Friday night spaghetti dinners where he treated each of them like adults.

After Diana passed away, Don fell in love again and spent the last 27 years with his wife, Ceres Artico. Don and Ceres continued to renovate the High Street house where they hosted countless dinner parties, yoga sessions, meditation sessions and other gatherings.

He cooked many gourmet meals for friends in their home, which is fondly referred to as “Chez Gallehr”. Don and Ceres lived their best lives travelling the globe to places near and far including Belgium, Brazil, the Caribbean, France, Great Britain, Greece, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, India, Mexico, and Portugal.

Don was a lifetime learner. He loved to take photographs and portraits, where he could capture a person’s soul on camera. He enjoyed making furniture and fixing things. Don found a passion for baking bread in the late ‘90s and was famous for bringing his tasty loaves to coworkers, neighbors, friends, and family. His grandchildren fondly refer to the bread as “Granddaddy Bread.”

Don will be missed by many. He had a gentle soul and embodied kindness. In his last few years, he battled Parkinson’s but never let it get him down. To stay active, he walked over 10,000 steps a day in Warrenton where he insisted on picking up stray bits of trash and he would stop into local shops to take a rest in a chair, to pet the bookstore’s resident cat, or to enjoy a short visit with a shop owner. Over all these steps, he continued to greet everyone with a smile and his bright blue eyes.

Don is survived by his wife, Ceres Artico, his sister, Barbara Slank, his three children, Marisa Faunce, John Gallehr and Brendan Gallehr, his sons in law, Bryon Miracle and Glen Faunce, his daughter in law, Tracy Gallehr, his eight grandchildren, Madeleine Faunce, Nicholas Gallehr, Alexander Gallehr, Benjamin Faunce, Ethan Gallehr Miracle, Eric Gallehr Miracle, Mitchell Gallehr and Elliot Gallehr Miracle.

A celebration of Don’s life will be held on March 28, 2026 at Moser Funeral Home in Warrenton, Virginia at 3:00 PM. A visitation will be held prior to the service from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM. A reception at O’Brien’s Irish Pub will follow the service. Don loved blue and yellow, so feel free to wear these colors to his service. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Dr. Don Gallehr Fund for the Support of Education of Writers at George Mason University.