Danitta Ruth Gilbert's Obituary
Danitta Ruth Gilbert passed away early in the morning on April 3rd, 2025. She was at home and in the presence of her family at the time.
Born on December 16th, 1954 to mother Rose. She took her first steps at eight months old and began running almost immediately. She was close with her siblings, especially her brother Richard.
During a period where she worked as a bartender and waitress, she met a traveling drummer named Stew Mortimer. A short time later they were married and had a son, Jullian. They divorced several years later, but they were still friends until Stew passed away in 2023.
After finishing college, Dani began her career as a nurse practitioner. Her desire to help people was a key motivator in her choice of profession, and a core aspect of her as a person. While working as a nurse, she moved among multiple different specialties, eventually settling on case management.
Dani opened her own firm, Desert Case Management, which would become one of the fastest growing companies in the field. Health complications forced her to close the business after several years, but in that period, she helped hundreds of clients navigate the complicated world of worker’s compensation for on-the-job injuries.
Work was never the most important thing to Dani, though. She loved to be of service, helping people was a sincere calling, but she also enjoyed spending time in nature. The desert was her church. She could frequently be found hiking in Sabino Canyon or on Mt. Lemmon. She also loved to read books, particularly mysteries and thrillers.
And what mattered most to Dani was family. Despite not having any biological children after Jullian, she took in and raised many foster kids. This is a pattern that would come to define Dani as a person – whenever someone needed help, she would take them in, leading to the informal adoption of over a dozen young men and women over the course of Dani’s life.
The story of Dani Gilbert can’t be told without also telling the story of Michael Kuntzelman. It’s the love that defined the final act of Dani’s life. They met years before they would begin dating, when Michael and Dani’s sons became friends at elementary school. Dani and Mike developed a strong friendship, one which eventually grew into love. Once they were together, there was no going back, and they would remain married for the rest of their lives.
Together, Dani and Mike started the Escalante Springs Equine Rescue, where they worked on equine rehabilitation and therapy. Through this nonprofit, they explored the idea to use caring for horses as a method of therapy for PTSD victims and veterans. They also nurtured injured horses back to health for adoption (at least, when they could be convinced to part with the horses, which wasn’t always a guarantee).
But tragically, Michael spent his final years fighting cancer, the same disease that would claim Dani. During the twilight of their lives, Dani took care of Michael, easing his journey until he passed. The devotion that she showed to him could only be described as the purest form of love. Then, only a little over a year later, Dani followed Mike into the beyond.
Dani is survived by her children, siblings, and many dear friends.
A service to remember Dani and her life will be held Friday April 25th at 1pm. The service will be in the chapel at the Evergreen Mortuary at 3015 N. Oracle Road, Tucson Arizona, 85705.
The family asks that instead of flowers, a donation be made to the Pima Animal Care Center https://www.friendsofpacc.org/
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