Robert John “R.J.” Shanley, 21, of Galena, IL was granted his angel wings on October 28, 2017 passing away peacefully in his sleep. Friends may gather from 4 to 7 PM, Thursday, November 2, 2017 at the Furlong Funeral Chapel, Galena. Burial will be at a later date. Cremation rites have been accorded. He was born July 15, 1996 in Dubuque, IA the son of Robert Shanley and Amy Freese. R.J.’s final days were spent surrounded by family, friends and the beloved dogs, cats and goats that he loved so much. One of the joys of his life was helping his mother run their kennel, Paws and Claws Lodge where he especially loved caring for special needs dogs. R.J. was a suicide survivor and endured many long reconstructive surgeries with a positive attitude and a smile on his face.  Just before a surgery he would hand over his iPad, pat his Mom’s hand and say ‘It will be fine’ and it always was. R.J. was always concerned that his Mom would be okay and that she would be taken care of. The almost four years since his suicide attempt were filled with joy and laughter and we treasure the extra years that God granted us. R.J. would spend all night at his desk playing online games with his friends and lending his opinion to forums.  He would often stop to text his Mom at work to let her know that the animals were behaving and to say “Everything is fine.” “To the world you may be just one person but to one person you may be the world.” R.J. is survived by his loving mother Amy, who was his world and a half-sister Holly Hessling, He also leaves his maternal grandparents, Karen and Gerald Freese of Menominee; aunts Tamara Sanderson (Eric) of Dubuque, Kathleen Shanley of Galena; uncles Terry and Tim (Chrissy) Freese of Menominee. His beloved cousins Jared Freese, Grant and Laine Sanderson, Abbey, Isabelle and Audrianne Freese; nephews and nieces Shawn, August, Keily, Kyra and Kendall Collins. His special pet children Bugsy and Prissy (pugs), Pan and Fog (cats) and Mama, Miracle, Domino, Speckle and Shades (goats). R.J. was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents Robert (Mary) Shanley, uncle Joe Shanley, maternal great grandparents Charles “Pete” (Marcella) Peters Sr. and Ben (Hilda) Freese, paternal great grandparents, John (Bertha) Shanley and Paul Friede and Irene Miller and his aunt Susie (Terry) Freese. Thank you to all who have reached out to our family with a kind word or a shared story of just how much R.J. meant to you. Special thanks to his friends who were such a source of joy in his life – Rachel Melancon, William Kern, Dylan Einsweiler, Hope White, Marie Drapeau, Coel Schultz, Morgan Cannon, his online gaming community, Heide O’Shea, Nat Ewers of the Galena Garden Club and Sarah Justmann, NP at Medical Associates who R.J. really liked. More special thanks to University of Iowa Hospital and especially Dr. Rodrigo Bayon who guided us through R.J.’s facial reconstruction journey.  Though R.J. was always perfect to us.