Julie Tran Wu peacefully passed away in her sleep at 5:01 am on February 17th, 2024, at her home in Sanford, Florida at the age of 91.
Julie was born on June 1, 1932 in Saigon, Vietnam. She was the first woman to be accepted into Phu Tho Polytechnique School, where she received her degree in Civil Engineering in 1958. Soon after, she was one of 10 university graduates nationwide who was selected to receive a Fulbright scholarship to pursue her masters degree in the United States, where she met her husband James Wu at Purdue University and graduated in 1963.
Her daughter Carolyn was born in 1965, and she was raised in Chicago Illinois. In her career, Julie worked as a Civil Engineer at Swift, the Internal Revenue Service, and New York Life Insurance before retiring in 1990. Julie was known as an incredibly sharp woman who paved the way for female engineers in Vietnam and in America. Despite being extremely accomplished in her career, Julie remained incredibly humble, choosing to share her success with her family and the underprivileged.
A few of her contributions include funding a computer room at her elementary school in Saigon, and leading a project to build a bridge in her childhood neighborhood. As a result, she has made a strong impact on her community, and there is currently a street named after her in Saigon as a thank you for her generosity. Julie was truly a gem of a person – she had a genuinely kind soul, and she always made sure to take care of others before herself. While she had strong relationships with many friends and family in her life, her overwhelming capacity for love was most closely observed by her husband, James, whom she was married to for 60 years.
While she will be deeply missed, she continues to be a role model, and her life, full of joy, success, and love, will always be an inspiration to those who were close to her.
Julie is survived by her husband James, her daughter Carolyn, and her granddaughter, Sarah.
A funeral is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on February 24, at DeGusipe Funeral Home and Crematory in Maitland, Florida, with a reception to follow. All are welcome to attend and celebrate Julie’s life.