Michael Evan Galbraith

Dr. Michael Evan Galbraith went to his untimely yet peaceful death at the University Of Colorado Hospital on January 16, 2017 at the age of 65. Michael was born on December 28, 1951 in Bemidji, Minnesota, a beautiful north woods city. He completed high school from Maplewood Academy in Hutchinson Minnesota (1970); his Bachelors in Nursing from Union College in Lincoln Nebraska (1975); a Master's in Mental Health Nursing with a functional area of Administration from Loma Linda University Graduate School in Loma Linda, California (1978); his PhD in Social Psychology from Claremont Graduate School Department of Psychology in Claremont, California (1989); and postdoctoral research with an emphasis in social support and research methods from the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing in San Francisco, California (1993). As nurse, scholar teacher, and researcher Michael influenced and improved the lives of many in his roles as a clinical nurse in urology, psychiatric/mental health, and home health; professor of nursing designing and teaching courses that included psych mental health, Community Mental Health Nursing, Nursing Research, and Health Psychology; and mentor/academic advisors to many masters and doctoral students on their thesis and dissertation. Michael's research on the effect of sex role identity on quality of life for men with prostate cancer and health-related quality of life for prostate cancer patients and their wives was funded by the National Institute of Health. He is a published author on more than twenty scholarly articles. As a leader in the professional community he has served and/or chaired committees including curriculum, research, the University Institutional Review Board and belonged to professional organizations such as the American Psychological Association, American Association of University Professors, and Sigma Theta Tau, National Honor Society for Nurses. Volunteer activities included Board of Directors for the American Assembly for Men in Nursing, Board member for the Inland Empire California Red Cross, and the Research and Scientific Advisory Board for the Oncology Nursing Society. Alongside Michael's commitment to excellence in nursing, teaching, and research he developed other loves. You could find him collecting precious gems and minerals (various types of opals were his favorite), fine wood items from furniture to knives, and antique time pieces; exploring and/or riding motorcycles and interesting powerful cars; planning long road trips with audio books and international travel; or enjoying live artistic performances, camping in his camper, the movies, and the ocean. He loved cottage cheese on green beans, pizza, and baked potatoes, flannel sheets, George Carlin, cashmere, old westerns, and getting off the beaten path literally and figuratively. He hated cucumbers, halo halo (a Filipino dessert), itchy wool sweaters and socks, small talk, and having to be on ""beaten paths"". Michael married Leli Pedro at ""Cedar Grove"" their mountain home in Forest Falls California on June 28, 1998. They met as mature adults at Loma Linda University School of Nursing in Loma Linda California where they were both faculty. Together they continued their nursing careers as faculty at Oregon Health and Sciences University in Ashland Oregon and then the University Of Colorado Denver College Of Nursing in Aurora Colorado. Michael is survived by his wife Leli Pedro, parents Fredrick and Dorothy Rigsby Galbraith of Brooksville Florida, and Sheryl (sister), Jeff (brother-in-law) and Jory (nephew) of New Salem North Dakota. of life. Flowers and plants add beauty to Memorial Services and are welcome. And in lieu of flowers, please strongly consider a memorial contribution in Michael's honor to Heartlight Center http://www.heartlightcenter.org and/or Watson Caring Science Center www.nursing.ucdenver.edu/caringscience Both organizations embody Michael's tireless effort and commitment to high quality, human-centered health and quality of life from the inside out … the space from which Michael lived and gave love throughout his lifetime.