Pete was born on a Winters day in December of 1940. December 3rd in Garretson South Dakota was a very happy day for the Galliher Family. Pete was now the baby of the family with a brother(David Arne) two years old and a sister(Patricia Diane) one year old. The name on his birth certificate was Gerald Theodore Galliher. Gerald was a favorite name and he probably would have picked up the nickname Gerry except the Doctor had different ideas. When he held Pete upside down and slapped him on the back to get him breathing he said "Hey Pete, wake up" So Pete was Christened by Dr. Shorga. It wasn't the first time Dr. Shorga did this. He did the same thing when Philip Alan McDonald was born. He slapped Phillip Alan on the back and said "Hey Butch wake up..." Fortunately for Butch he was able to shuck that name when he grew up. Pete's name was a favorite name of Petes father David Isaac Galliher. Everyone liked that name and it stuck. Pete's middle name Theodore came from his uncle Ted whom Pete worshipped all of his life. Uncle Ted was Pete's mothers(Guste Amelia) twin brother. The fresvik twins, Ted and Guste were born in a Sod farmhouse in _____County, Minnesota. The Fresvik family moved to Garretson on Armistice day in 1918, the day WWI ended. Pete had a very happy early childhood, and he was soon blessed with two younger sisters, Susan and Sharon. What most people don't know about Pete is that he started the first grade at age 5 in Deming, New Mexico. The Galliher home in those days was in a row house made of cinder block with a concrete floor Cooking and Heating were done on a wood stove Outside the kitchen door was a coal bin.'s Petes duties were to assist his mother by delivering coal to the stove but his dismay he was not allowed to chop kindling because he was not of age so this duty fell to his older brother. There was definitely some resentment because he was more that capable of chopping kindling with his brother axe. Pete's antics were a source of family entertainment and pride but he had a couple of bad scrapes growing up in Garretson. The Splitrock River was off limits to the children of Garretson unless they were with their parents. Everyone enjoyed the park in summer for picnics and fishing. Pete managed to find his way down to the river one day and when he went missing the whole town turned out to find him. His shoes were found at the rivers edge, right above the dam, his mothers anguish was indescribable. The river had taken mothers childhood friends and she was inconsolable in her grief, until Pete was discovered taking a nap in the house. Pete was only 4 or 5 years old and despite the fact that he was admonished (to say the least) never to go near the river again, it didn't take long before he was right back at it but, he was careful not to get caught. It is safe to say that he earned his reputation as "a little imp" but, his adventures were many and he kept everybody guessing as to what he would come up with next. You might think that the most memorable incident of his childhood was when everyone thought he had drowned but that wasn't it. Pete really shook up the town of Garretson SD one fine summers afternoon behind Rollag's Garage. Pete and his friends had some matches and they wondered if there was anything inside the big empty oil drums behind the garage. So they decided that the way to find out was just light a match and drop the match into one of the 50 gallon drums to find out if they could see anything. Gerald DeShepper was knocked unconscious by the explosion which rocked the town of Garretson. Another one of Pete's adventures that made him famous for his mischief. Pete got to shoot his first rifle when he was 7 years old. Brother David was 9 when he got a Steven's single shot bolt action 22 rifle. Pete and David went with their father to the Devil's Gulch for their first target practice. Pete had to wait 3 whole years before he was old enough to go hunting on his own, three years was a long time and then he had to get permission from his father and older brother before he could go hunting on his own. But the years of waiting paid off because he had weapon safety drilled into the core of his being and never had an accident. Blackbirds were the nemesis of the farmers and they encouraged Pete and all the young hunters to eliminate as many as possible. Farmers even handed out free 22 shells, sometimes. Birds made the farmers lives miserable because they could eat the seeds faster than the farmer could put them in the ground. Birds and rabbits were the first game that Pete hunted in his native South Dakota homeland. Game was plentiful in the fall in the form of Pheasants. When Pete graduated to Pheasant Hunting he was the favorite hunting partner of his uncle Ted. Ted Fresvik trained Pete in the Art of taking Pheasants, Ducks and Geese. Ted instructed Pete with regard to hunting and fishing. In the family Pete was always said to be "Ted's Boy". He was named after Ted and he loved him with all of his heart and soul. To Ted, Pete was the son he never had. Ted and Pete hunted Pheasants,Ducks and Geese. They fished their favorite lakes and whenever possible the Split Rock River. The Split Rock was the western border of the town of Garretson, SD. The river was cut by the glaciers that covered North America 10,000 years ago. The glaciers cut through the stone bedrock and left huge rock formations along the banks. A dam was built during the depression. A Stone bath house was built at the dam site which also housed a concession stand. A mountainous glacier sat beside the river at this point 10,000 years ago. it cut a swath through solid rock and the result was a stream that emptied into the Split Rock river just above the dam There were many very high rock formations along this tiny creek The rock formations and creek became known as The Devil's Gulch. To promote the town a bridge was erected across the creek at a point where a deep gorge had been cut by the glacier. The City Fathers named the bridge Jesse James Bridge and the legend was started that Jesse James jumped the gorge at that point when the pop[[[sse was chasing him. As a boy Pete loved the Devil's Gulch and he spent time there camping, fishing, hunting and trapping. Pete started grade school in Deming, New Mexico BROTHER I LOVE YOU That's what brothers do Not for you but for me This is just what is true It's just what brothers do You knew you were a spirit Human is what you wanted to be Now that experience is Done Your spirit is now truly free Don't hang around here Just to check up on me Get down to the Pier And get back out to Sea Chart that course and find Uncle Ted Uncle Sam Granpa and Grandma Richard and Patty You'll find Mom and Dad They have a place at the table That is always for you. That is what parents do Go Petey Boy Take all my love Your boat's pushing off I'll give you a shove Love you