“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him (1 Corinthians 2:9).”

Holding the hands of an angel, Julie Anne Bergman Gilbert left our earth to be wrapped in the arms of the Lord. Julie passed away peacefully at home in Austin, Texas on June 27, 2020, just two days shy of her 78th birthday.

Julie grew up in rural St. James, Minnesota, the daughter of country doctor, Dr. O.B. Bergman and his wife Louella. Along with her older sister, Karen, Julie attended school in St. James, attended the local Lutheran Church and proudly graduated from St. James High School. She went on to study at Augustana University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Restless, spirited, and always on the move, Julie took to the skies after college as a flight attendant for American Airlines. Along with her bevy of stewardess friends, Julie traveled the world over, taking in the sights and sounds of too many countries and places to count, accumulating rich memories and ample keepsakes. It was a bright, dark-eyed, wavy haired man from Galveston that finally won her heart. Julie married Jason Perlman on August 30, 1968 in Dallas. After getting married, they moved to Austin, where Jason worked for the Lt. Governor and an assortment of political types under the granite dome, and Julie set about raising their daughter, Stacy. Her life took some difficult turns when Julie had to return home to Minnesota for extended periods to take care of her ailing Mom and when Jason died unexpectedly.

Thanks to the introduction from a dear friend, Julie fell for a farmer, rancher, and football coach from Electra, Texas named Troy Gilbert, whom she married. Troy treated young Stacy like his own, and as they moved to the family farm in Wichita County, he set about teaching them both the ways of raising cotton, wheat, and sheep, border collies and show lambs. Life was soon filled again with the rhythms of small towns, country living, gatherings of friends and family, farm and ranch work, stock shows, school events, and sporting contests. Never content, however, to sit in one place for long, Julie nurtured her wandering spirit as a flight attendant, and used that opportunity to ensure her daughter saw and knew a world beyond the red dirt and red bricks of Electra. Together, she and Stacy spent many joyful times touring and traveling across Europe and the United States. She also loved to take Stacy back to her childhood home in Minnesota to revel in the company of her beloved sister and her husband, Dr. Don Davis, and her nephew and niece, Don Jr. and Debby.

Julie ultimately moved to the Dallas area to be closer to her work and to her Dallas area friends, who enriched her with great company, ample wine, plays and musicals galore, and abundant laughter. Upon the marriage of her daughter and the birth of their son, Ryland, Julie retired from her 43-year career as a flight attendant with American and moved to Austin to be closer to her grandson. She loved young Ryland with every beat in her heart and savored her time reading, playing, and laughing with him.

Julie’s last couple of years were not easy health wise. Ever the fighter, and with her characteristic fierce independence, Julie never focused on her own hardships, instead taking great pleasure in the simple things in life- walks in the park, visits with family, time with kids, and vanilla Frappuccinos. She was aided in no small part by the loving, compassionate, and selfless care of her caregivers, Eloisa Dominguez and her son Rene, Erick “Leavitt” Nchanji and his family, and Yvelene Destin and her family, all of whom Julie’s family wishes to thank deeply and dearly.

Julie will be fondly remembered as the great encourager, whose home was always open to family, friends, neighbors, and guests when they needed comfort or counsel. Her house and yard were immaculate, her love of her pets was unconditional, and her tart tongue and roll of the eyes would quickly remind one that Julie did not tolerate pretension well or suffer fools gladly. She showered her daughter with great love and great sacrifice, always impressing upon her the importance of a strong faith, a good education, hard work, and serving and helping others in need, irrespective of the time or place. For Julie, right was right, and wrong was wrong, a value system that she held close and dear to the very end. Julie was preceded in death by her parents, Louella and Dr. O.B. Bergman, and her brother-in-law, Dr. Don Davis. She is survived by her daughter Stacy and husband Carter Smith, her grandson Ryland, her sister Karen Davis, her nephew Dr. Donald E. Davis Jr. (Dr. Catherine Davis) and their sons Drew and Nick and grandson Cayden, niece Dr. Debby Christopher (Kevin) and their children Scott and Sarah, and a gaggle of great friends. The family respectfully requests that any memorials in her name be made to Julie’s favorite charity, Happy Hill Farm in Granbury, a school where kids are given an exceptional education in a Christian environment (www.happyhillfarm.org).

Click here to view the virtual Memorial Service held for Julie on July 10th, 2020