Obituary of Jennifer Gail Gilson-Gilliam

Beloved to so many, Jennifer Gail Gilson-Gilliam, age 55, departed the planet on March 3, 2024, after an extended illness. She was a devoted wife, sister, daughter, aunt, and an amazing friend.

Jennifer was born in Framingham, Massachusetts on April 6, 1968 to the late Peter H and the late Joan E Gilson. She grew up in Hauppauge Long Island, New York and was frequent visitor in and out of her beloved NYC before moving to the Dallas - Fort Worth, Texas area in 1985. It was here that she completed her degree at Texas Wesleyan University in Art History, and met the love of her life, Ray Gilliam. Their 30 years together are a reflection of a true partnership, commitment in adversity and unconditional love. Those who witnessed their lives together are better for it.

A beautiful and creative soul, Jen was an artist and loved working in the theater as a set designer, a props mistress and box office manager. She advocated for equity always and worked to raise awareness for many important causes. Most recently, she loved her customer service role at CBD American Shaman of Lake Highlands, and created a community of new friends through her active engagement.

Jen was pure love. She was also a smart, strong, courageous, and caring woman, who excelled at building and maintaining relationship and created a welcoming environment for everyone she met.

She was so honored and proud to be a sister-in-law and an aunt and often shared with friends the many accomplishments of her nieces and nephews. Jen had a talent for really listening and never stopped learning. She enjoyed cooking, finding perfect gifts for others, traveling, loving on her cats, being at the beach (especially in Breezy Point), and celebrating family traditions. She loved good conversations with her family, friends, and neighbors and, even when she was the patient, made her medical team feel as though they were personally so important to her – they were.

Jen is survived by her devoted husband, Roland Ray Gilliam, sister Jeanine (nee Gilson) Nagao and brother-in-law, Kageki Nagao, her Gilliam family, Roland Ray Gilliam, Jr. and Dorothy Gilliam, brothers and sisters, Casey and Tamenie Gilliam, Kim and Curtis Crandall and her nieces and nephews, Ryan, Kyle, Emma, and Abigail, who adored her. She encouraged her friends to feel like family and, honestly, we’ll all be a little lost without her.

Jen’s legacy is embedded in the people she loved for decades, through her unending acts of service for others, as a loving caregiver for her parents, a companion to those in need, and in her everyday efforts to bring joy and beauty to others, while treating everyone with sincere kindness and respect.

The family wishes to thank the gifted and caring medical professionals who improved and enhanced her life, especially Dr. Elizabeth Ann Moran and her team, Dr. Maria Rita LepeSuastegui, Courtney, the home nurse, and the ICU teams of Presbyterian and UT Southwestern.

Please join family and friends for a Memorial Service / Celebration of Life reception in Dallas on Friday, April 12, 2024, from 11:30 am - 1:30 pm at the Latino Cultural Center Lobby, 2600 Live Oak St, Dallas, TX 75204.

The family requests that you remember Jen with joy and laughter. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made in Jen’s memory to Dallas Cat Lady at https://dallascatlady.org/ under the donations page.