Ellaine Joyce Rafael Quintos Gallagher

Ellaine Joyce Rafael Quintos was Born on June 6, 1987 at United Doctors Hospital in Quezon City Metro Manila, Philippines. She was the third child of Edmundo and Ederlinda Quintos. Due to the eruption of Mount Pinatubo and closure of US Naval Base her mother applied as a Registered Nurse in California and her family moved to the USA in 1994. After 4 months the Northridge earthquake occurred and her family evacuated to Oxnard California which she later considered her hometown. Always seemed to be on the move, bouncing from different homes and schools, Ellaine had an energetic personality and was able to easily make new friends.

In 1999, her mom landed a job in Avenal State prison and she was on the move again with her siblings. They moved to Lemoore, CA where she attended Liberty Middle School. There she became part of the marching band, playing the clarinet and becoming a drum major. Being in a small town, Ellaine and her sisters were acquainted with most of the population and had many friends.

In 2002, they moved back to Oxnard, where she then graduated from Oxnard High School. These were the times she became heavily involved in her religion, holding various offices to include Choir, youth group leadership, and Children’s Worship Service teacher. She dedicated her life in her faith and made sure she worked her schedule around the worship services and activities held within the church.

Because she loved being with her family, never taking for granted their presence in her life, she wanted to stay as close to home as possible. Ellaine attended college at CSU Channel Islands, where she pursued and earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing with a minor in Psychology in 2010. Along with her siblings, she wanted to make her mom happy, and do what she can to make her proud. Getting her nursing degree was a big one. But she loved to learn new things, explore, and set no limits.

Although she completed her degree in Nursing, she wanted to try something new, find a new setting and have a fresh new start. She related more with her brother and joined the Navy in 2013 where she served a term as an Aviation Mechanic, earning a rank of Second Class in 4 years. She went to Great Lakes, Chicago for Basic training, then met up with her brother in Pensacola, FL for her A School. Thereafter, she was stationed in Coronado, CA where she again reunited with her brother. After almost 3 years, she was fortunately and coincidently assigned back home. Stationed at Point Mugu, she met and fell in love with Evan. From there she went on to purchase her first home in Oxnard, CA and eventually finished her career in the Navy.

On April 8, 2017, she married Evan Gallagher inside the Church of Christ, Local Congregation of South Jacksonville, FL. Evan was deployed to Okinawa, Japan for 8 months, in which Ellaine was able to travel and experience life in Japan for a couple of months. She made the most of her stay there and enjoyed the way she knew how. She then returned to Jacksonville Florida becoming the Head Choir Leader in the Church of Christ in the Local Congregation where she was married.

Their first home as a married couple was in Jacksonville, Fl, in a small barn house. They liked to keep it simple and make the most of what they had. On September 1, 2018, they purchased their first home together, also in Jacksonville, FL.

She then went back and continued where she left off after college, passing her National Council Licensure Examination for Nursing (NCLEX) and continuing her career as a Registered Nurse.

In March 2021, Ellaine was diagnosed with Triple Negative Breast Cancer. She was fierce in her battle and made sure she did everything she could to defeat the cancer with the support of her parents and husband every step of the way. She received multiple treatments to include chemotherapy, multiple surgical procedures, radiation therapy and immunotherapy. In May 2022 she was informed her cancer was aggressive and had progressed. She consulted with multiple institutions seeking for second opinions and eventually moved to California in June 2022 to continue treatments closer to her siblings. Ellaine’s battle came to an end July 23, 2022 with her husband, mom, dad, brother, and sister by her side. Though difficult her journey may have been, she was fearless remaining a diligent choir leader and faithful member inside the Church of Christ (Iglesia Ni Cristo) til her last breath. Her bright and genuine smile, her laughter, beautiful voice and never ending love will live in our hearts forever.