ATLANTA, Ga. — Gertrude D. Callahan, 98, a longtime Auburn resident, passed away in Atlanta, Ga., on Sunday, Feb. 26, following a stroke.

She was born Gertrude Anna Downing on Nov. 1, 1918, in Enfield, Mass. Enfield was one of four towns submerged under the Quabbin Reservoir by the damming of the Swift River Valley in the 1930s. She often talked about her and her three younger brothers swimming in the Swift River behind their house.

Trudy, as she was known to most of her friends, met her husband, Herbert Callahan (later two-term Auburn mayor) when he was working in Massachusetts rebuilding bridges damaged in the historic 1938 hurricane. They moved to Auburn shortly after they were married in 1939.

She and her family lived in Auburn until the early 1970s, when they moved to South Florida. Except for a couple of years in Reno, Nev., she lived the remainder of her life in Atlanta after relocating there in 1993. Trudy was always so helpful and giving to others, that she enriched the lives of many people and is deeply missed.

Trudy had three children, one of whom, Donald, predeceased her in 2010.

She is survived by her daughter, Beverly Caron of Corvallis, Ore.; and her son, Dennis Callahan of Roswell, Ga.; along with granddaughter, Joline Callahan of Auburn, and other grandchildren and great-grandchildren.