Gilbert "Gil" Hurley
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Gilbert (Gil) Emanuel Hurley of Dallas, Texas passed away on October 31, 2021 peacefully surrounded by his wife and four daughters. He will always be remembered as a loving, generous, devoted and fun husband, dad, grandpa, father-in-law, brother, uncle and friend.
Born in Wichita, Kansas on February 9, 1937 to John E. and Frances Weigand Hurley, Gil attended Blessed Sacrament Grade School and St. Mary's Cathedral High School in Wichita. He received a BS in Engineering from Wichita State University in 1961. Gil and Carol Haag married in 1961 and in 1962 he both became a father for the first time and began his career as a systems engineer in manufacturing systems at Boeing in Wichita.
In 1968, Gil joined Electronic Data Systems (EDS), moved his family to Dallas, Texas and began his 30-year career at the company rising from a systems engineer to a senior corporate executive. He moved his family around the country in his early career from Dallas, to Minneapolis, to San Francisco, and back to Dallas in 1972 as a Corporate Vice President. In 1984, after General Motors purchased EDS, Gil moved to Michigan until 1989 when he returned once again with Carol to Dallas, retiring from EDS in 1997.
For the next two decades, Gil jumped into his new role as global travel companion to Carol, visiting his now grown and independent daughters in various cities, welcoming sons-in-law to balance the female energy in his life, and his favorite role as the devoted and fun-loving grandpa to seven grandchildren. Gil, ever the planner and traveler, loved new experiences, and he and Carol traversed the globe in search of adventure, visiting all seven continents, over 100 countries and all the 50 states. The places that made the strongest impact on Gil were his pilgrimages to the Holy Land and Marian shrines, safaris in Africa and expeditions to Antarctica, the Arctic and South Pacific Islands, and a medical mission to Central America. While he loved world traveling, his passion was spending holidays, milestones and celebrations with Carol and his large extended family. The consummate host, Gil made every family reunion and get-together memorable and special, including incorporating special gourmet menus, silly games and a broad range of activities.
Gil's life was guided by his deep, personal religious faith and his personal values. He was committed and generous in sharing the blessings he received. He often shared his little "life lessons," passing them to his family by both word and example. He supported several charitable organizations, especially Catholic charities, Catholic education and the Southwest Franciscan Navajo Missions. Gil will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by all who knew and loved him, as he enjoyed celebrating life and spreading joy.
Gil is survived by his wife Carol, of 60 years, daughters, Joanne Piper (Greg) of Houston, Texas; Karen Christensen (Kevin) of Plano, Texas; Laurie MacKenzie (Doug) of St. Helena, California; and Donna Reilly (Dan) of West Bloomfield, Michigan. Grandsons Kyle Christensen of Winter Garden, Florida, and Bryce Piper of College Station, Texas, and granddaughters Amanda Christensen of Bend, Oregon; Nicole Piper of New York City; Renee Piper of Austin, Texas; Evelyn Reilly Sute (Daniel), of Royal Oak, Michigan; and Carolyn Reilly of West Bloomfield, Michigan. Also, brother, Jerry Hurley of Hackensack, New Jersey, sisters-in-law, Jo Hurley of San Francisco, California; Sharon Hurley of Wichita, Kansas; Marilyn Allen and Wilma Flattery of Park City, Kansas, and many nephews and nieces.
Preceding Gil in death were his parents, sister Patricia, and brothers, Jed and Tim Hurley.
The family would like to express its sincere appreciation to the nursing staff of Highland Springs Fountain View and the VNA Hospice team for their compassionate care of Gil and support of the family.
Visitation will be held at Sparkman-Hillcrest Funeral Home, 7405 west Northwest Highway, Dallas, Texas Sunday, November 7 at 4:00pm followed by a prayer and remembrance service at 6:00pm
The Funeral Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Monday, November 8 at 11:00 am at All Saints Catholic Church, 5231 Meadowcreek Drive at Arapaho, Dallas. A reception will follow immediately after at the church fellowship hall. Livestreamed Mass will be available through www.Sparkman-Hillcrest.com
Memorial contributions may be made to The Catholic Foundation (of the Catholic Diocese of Dallas)
5310 Harvest Hill Road, Suite 248, Dallas, Texas 75230 (www.catholic foundation.com)
and / or to St. Michaels Mission, P.O. Box 680, St Michael, AZ 86511