Meet Jim Gilbert: Faith Shines Through
Mary Ann Taylor
Jim Gilbert, now of Duncanville, grew up in a segregated Atlanta and likes to tell people he was born in the colored section of Grady Memorial Hospital, a place many people don’t realize existed.
When he was young—just 4 or 5—he was with his mother shopping in the Three Sisters department store and grew thirsty. Black mothers were given little collapsible cups for their children to use if their fountain was broken or too dirty. He remembers an older white woman, with her gloves and purse, asking him, “Baby, do you want some water?” She scooped him up and held him for a drink in the white fountain. He’s never forgotten that.
Atlanta in the 1960s was the center for prominent Black thinkers in the civil rights movement. Marches and other non-violent protests were commonplace. Martin Luther King Jr. preached and spoke from Atlanta, of course, but Jim had the privilege of seeing Robert Abernathy, Hosea Williams, Stokely Carmichael, and others in action.
Things have changed, but Black families still have to have “The Talk” about encounters with police–what to do if pulled over, how to have license and registration ready so no movement of hands could be misinterpreted. He remembers a particular stretch of road in Alabama that was notorious. “Don’t get stopped there,” people would say, “because you might not get out alive.”
Jim believes it’s appropriate to celebrate Black History Month. He laughed “that in the Black community people do notice it’s the shortest month.” He added, “It’s not that anyone needs to be put on a pedestal, but people need to know about our important contributions.” His heroes as a child included Hop-along Cassidy and Lone Ranger. He was amazed to learn that Bass Reeves, a real-life Black lawman in the west, was the basis for the Lone Ranger.
The military has been a place where Black men could show their courage and commitment. He wants people to remember the Harlem Hell Soldiers, Tuskegee Airmen, and, years earlier, the Buffalo Soldiers of the western frontier. It’s not that the military was a sure way to respect, however. As Jim wrote in 1979, “In every conflict, we men of color rose to defend the flag of red, white and blue/Always waiting for the same respect that excluded us, hoping the promise of freedom for us would be true.”
In 1968, the United States Marine Corps drafted Jim and assigned him to be an infantryman. He did much more, however, when he arrived in Vietnam and was sent to the reconnaissance unit. There he learned skills in escape and invasion, intelligence gathering, and demolition. Later in his career, he was a non-commissioned officer in charge of an armory that received high praise and recognition; he gave his team much credit for that honor. One of his battalion commanders knew of Ross Perot and EDS. The company recruited him, and Jim moved to Dallas after his years of service.
Jim is active in the Church of the Disciple United Methodist Church where he serves as an assistant lay minister and trustee. He works with the recovery of the church from extensive water damage to the facility following the 2021 winter storm. Pipes burst, and water ruined ceilings and floors. The congregants were out of their church for two years following other damage, COVID, and then the ice.
In another poem, Jim’s faith shines:
In the world,
so complex, modern and unfair
Wisdom comes from knowing
the answers can be found in prayer.
Jim Gilbert
Clearly, his faith has been a support for him throughout his fascinating life. He continues to be of service in his community and at his church.
Author’s Note: As chair of the Keep Duncanville Beautiful Board, I recently had the opportunity to sit in on the orientation of a new member, Jim Gilbert. The city liaison worked to resolve a technical issue, so he and I discussed his background when I noticed his Vietnam military insignia. Our churches came up as topics as well. He loved my description of interfaith work, so important for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Dallas area. He said, “I believe when we know each other’s stories we’ll find we have much in common.” Asked about sharing his story, he was willing but wanted to highlight growing up in the Jim Crow south. Even for those of us who’ve been here all our lives, he has added details of a world most of us don’t know.
Featured Photo: Proud United States Marine Jim Gilbert, front and center. Personal photos for this article courtesy of Jim Gilbert.
Mary Ann Taylor is communications director for the Dallas Texas Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints living in Duncanville.
