Julia Therese (Barrett) Gutierrez passed away on June 17, 2023. She was 41. She was preceded in death by her grandparents, John & Helen Doyle and William & Eileen Barrett; father, John"Jack" Barrett and mother, Joanne (Doyle) Barrett and godmother Barbara Mruz. She is survived by her sister Mary (Tim) Kirby; brother Patrick Barrett; nieces Jane and Maisie Kirby; nephew, William Kirby; cousins Barrett (Katie) O'Donovan, Colin (Joan) O'Donovan, Moira (Brent) Warnement, godfather Richard Mruz and longtime loving companion, Lucas McEntee.

Julia was born November 16, 1981 and was raised on the northwest side of Chicago with her sister, Mary and brother, Patrick. There they were surrounded by family and friends and made many happy memories celebrating birthdays, block parties and communions. Julia and her family also spent many years of her childhood traveling to Delavan, Wisconsin and across the United States in their camper.

Julia grew up attending elementary school at St. Monica in Jefferson Park before eventually finishing high school in Arizona.

She returned to the Chicagoland area and graduated with a bachelor's degree in computer science from Lewis University in 2007. While at Lewis, she was able to travel to China and experience the culture there during a study abroad program.

Julia experienced many hardships in her later years but always remained resilient and never gave up on herself. Even in her final week, she was optimistic about her future and was excited about moving into her new apartment with her longtime companion, Lucas McEntee.

Julia's family would like to thank Thresholds, and the amazing, selfless case managers there who supported Julia and her familythroughout the past few years. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Thresholds at https://www.thresholds.org/support-thresholds.

A celebration of Julia's life will take place on Tuesday, August 1st from 5p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Liven Room located at 7013 N. Milwaukee Ave., Niles, Illinois 60714.  Julia's family invites all who wish to celebrate with us to attend and to join us in sharing memories, food and refreshments.

For information, 847-823-5122.