Joe Hal Gilbert

Funeral Services will be held at 2:00 P.M. in the Laurel Land Chapel of Chimes,7100 Crowley Road,Fort Worth,Texas on Friday, December 22,2023.

Joe was born July 20,1932 in Wister,OK. He married bettie Mae Sanders, January 27,1951 in Fort Worth,Texas. They were happily married for nearly 73 years.

Joe was a Korean Army war veteran and had a career in aeronautics. He retired from Lockheed Martin after 43 years. He was a member of Southcliff Baptist Church.

Joe's true passion in life was his family. He was a dedicated husband,son,father,and grandfather. His family was his heart.

Joe was preceded in death by Father-Burdette Gilbert,Mother-Retha Gilbert, Brother-Billy Gilbert, Grandson-Michael Brooks Rash, He is survived by Spouse-Bettie Gilbert, Daughter-Debra Jo Glegg and spouse James Glegg, Daughter-Joni Lee Sicking and spouse Matthew Sicking, Grandson-Joseph Edward Rash and spouse Alicia Smith, Grandson-Christopher Michael Sicking, Granddaughter-Lydia Mae Sicking.

Joe Hal Gilbert was born to Burdette and Retha Gilbert on July 20, 1932, in a small house in Wister, Oklahoma. If you knew Joe at all, you knew he came into the world loving airplanes. This man believed in flight so much that, as a very young child, he wrapped his shoulders in an old towel and leapt off his parents’ garage. He thought he would soar like Superman, but sadly, he crashed and ate some dust! But Joe wasn’t discouraged. He decided to pursue his obsession in a new way. He became an avid hobby airplane enthusiast making scrapbooks, building models, and flying gliders and remote-controlled airplanes.

When Joe was sixteen, his family moved to May Street in Fort Worth, and he quickly spied a lovely young neighbor. Her name was Bettie Mae Sanders, and she had naturally curly hair and ocean-blue eyes. A high school romance with Bettie riding on the back of Joe’s Harley Davidson motorcycle turned into a lifelong love affair. They married at the tender age of eighteen and remained devoted to each other for nearly 73 years. Joe and Bettie were inseparable, even doing the grocery shopping together. Bettie was the center of Joe’s world. When they began their married life, Joe worked at Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Company.

At the age of twenty he was drafted into the army. Joe was a true patriot and loved his country. He proudly served in the Korean war for two years. His stellar performance in aviation supply chain logistics and distribution led to a career at General Dynamics. Joe went from building model airplanes to building real fighter planes like the F-16. He literally glowed when discussing his life’s work.

Joe had a strong rapport with the employees he managed. He sincerely cared and encouraged them to take pride in their jobs. His people respected and loved him dearly and were inspired by his strong work ethic. Joe retired from Lockheed Martin after 43 years.

In his late twenties, while caring for his family and working full time, Joe went to night school and earned a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington. He had a mechanical mind so home and car repairs came easily to him. He never once hired a repairman, preferring to do it himself. He started woodworking as a hobby in high school and made many wonderful things over his lifetime. He even constructed garages and barns and did home remodeling. He was the go-to person of the family when anything broke down because he was the man who knew something about everything.

As passionate as Joe was about his hobbies and work, he loved his family more. Caring for his family was his true calling. And Joe loved Jesus. He was a lifelong Christian, having the early example set by his Grandfather Gilbert who was a Nazarene minister. Joe was a member of Southcliff Baptist Church and did a great deal of volunteer work through his Sunday school class with his wife Bettie. He made many dear friends at Southcliff.

Joe helped his fellow man. He was faithful and true to Christ, his neighbors and friends, and his family until the end. He cared for his parents and in-laws just as he cared for his wife, two daughters, and their families. He never failed to support Debra and Joni if the need arose, no matter the time of day or night. This devotion extended to his grandchildren Joseph, Michael, Christopher, and Lydia.

When Debra’s five-year-old son was dying of cancer, Joe took him on an airplane ride in a Cessna. Michael got to fly with Joe high in the sky. Before he passed away, Michael shared a dream he had. He said, “I was with you PawPaw, and we were floating above beautiful, white fluffy clouds.” Joe’s family is certain they are together now, flying free.