Joe D. Gilman

"Belchertown, Joe D. Gilman Jr., 77, died peacefully at his home surrounded by his loving family on Thursday, August 25. Joe was born on November 11, 1938 in Los Angeles, CA and was the son of Joe and Virginia Gilman. He was raised and resided in CA for most of his life before relocating to Belchertown in 1998. He earned a B.A. from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and an MA from UC Berkeley. As a mechanical engineer, he helped pioneer the civilian nuclear power industry during his time at General Electric and later EPRI. He served his country as a first lieutenant in the US Army. A devout lover of Jesus Christ, he was an Elder of Stony Brook Community Church in South Hadley. He served on the Belchertown Planning Board and was a Trustee of Pine Brook Camp. Everyone who knew him was impressed with his wisdom, perpetually calm demeanor, and wry sense of humor. He will be forever missed by his wife of 52 years, Judith (Hamilton) Gilman and their children, Janet (and husband James) Hartley of Granby, Julie (and husband Robert) Nikander of Phoenix, AZ, and Timothy (and wife Jodie Maguire) of Morgan Hill, CA, along with 8 grandchildren. His siblings, Margaret Davis, Samuel (and wife Jody) Gilman, Virginia McBratney, and his brother in law, Robert (and wife Adele) Hamilton, also survive him. A memorial service will be held at Stony Brook Community Church on August 30th at 7:00 p.m. Memorial donations in his memory may be made to pinebrookcamp.org. Beers & Story Belchertown Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements. "