Deborah A. Gilbertson

Deborah A. Gilbertson, 68, of San Antonio, Texas and Huron, passed away on Friday, February 13, 2026 at Audey Murphy Memorial Veteran's Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. 

Her funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m., on Wednesday, March 11, 2026 at Riverview United Methodist Church in Huron, with burial to follow at Riverside Cemetery. Military honors will be conducted by the South Dakota Army National Guard Honor Team and the Huron Veteran's Council. Her service will be live-streamed through https://www.youtube.com/c/HuronRiverview

Visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m., on Tuesday, March 10, 2026 at Welter Funeral Home in Huron. 

Dr. Debroah A. Gilbertson was born on June 6, 1957 to Milt and Viola (Taylor) Gilbertson in Huron. While growing up, Deb was active in 4-H where her mother, Vi, was her leader for many years.

A life-long student, Deb attended Huron public schools before graduating from South Dakota State University in 1980 with her Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry and Biology, her Master’s of Education from Boston University in 1987, Master’s of Liberal Arts from Harvard University in 1997, Licensed Practical Nurse degree in 1997, Mortuary Science degree in 2006 from San Antonio College, Doctorate of Psychology from California Coast University in 2008, Master of Adult Education in 2019 from East Carolina University and her Doctorate of Education from University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. She continued taking education courses in psychology and leadership from Oxford University through 2024.

Deb began her military career with the South Dakota Army National Guard in college at SDSU. She entered active duty in 1980 as a commissioned officer in the United States Army, where she had a life-long career in logistics and directing medical facilities. She traveled the world with the Army, being stationed in Germany for many years, Massachusetts, Korea, San Antonio, and Georgia. In 1990, Deb was deployed to Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield, Desert Storm where she was the director of logistics, maintenance and transportation for the 46th combat support hospital. Deb retired from the Army in 2008 at the rank of Lt. Colonel after 30 years of service. She received numerous awards and recognition for her service. After retirement, Deb enjoyed speaking at various Veteran and Memorial Day services.

A faithful student, Deb was also a teacher. She taught at the Department of Defense, Department of the Army Medical Center and School, Baylor University, and Wayland Baptist University---her area of focus was behavioral sciences and healthcare management.

After her mother’s retirement in 2015, Deb and Vi were inseparable. They loved to travel together, winters in Texas and summers in Huron, creating more memories and sharing lots of laughs. They traveled together throughout the US to California, Washington state, New York City, Washington DC, several times to Chicago. They enjoyed jaunting across the globe. Vi went to Europe several times both while Deb was in the Army and later, they traveled to Ireland 3 times. Her travels included Australia, New Zealand, China, Moscow, and of course Greece, Italy, Turkey, Germany, France, Holland, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.

Deb was a creative person who enjoyed quilting, cross-stich, painting, and tending to her flower gardens. Deb was active with the Harvard Club of San Antonio where she served on boards and committees.

Deb surrounded herself with many dear friends including Mike (Barb) Bauer of Huron, Pamela Raines of San Antonio, Texas, and Allen Smith of San Antonio, Texas; and many other friends and colleagues.

She was preceded in death by her beloved parents, Milt and Vi Gilbertson.