Eliane Fromont Bulkley

ELIANE FROMONT BULKLEY

Born July 3, 1941 in France - Died August 31, 2020 in Ft Myers, Florida after a brief illness.  In 1959, Marie-Claire Montgomery, Eliane’s closest friend since the first grade in Garches, immigrated to the United States.  In 1963 she sponsored Eliane's move to Dallas, Texas and the two of them held fast to their remarkable seventy-five-year friendship, speaking often until days before Eliane's death.

Eliane met her future husband, Jonathan A Bulkley in Dallas, where he had moved to be close to his sister, Virginia Bulkley Whitehill and her family.   After a brief courtship, they decided to auto trek across America and experienced a wonderful trip with many adventures and conversations.  Both avid readers of periodicals, biographies, non-fiction and fiction, they shared ideas of current events and their thoughts on the histories of their respective countries and world in general. In April 1965 they decided to make their relationship official and enjoyed the distinction of becoming the first couple to be married in the newly constructed non-denominational chapel (now a parking lot) at JFK International Airport before jetting off to Puerto Rico for their honeymoon.  New York City was the place in which they chose to begin their married life and raise their family.

As Jon advanced his professional life in finance, Eliane took her role as corporate wife seriously while raising two sons, Robert and Peter.   She possessed a natural curiosity, determination and intellect and armed herself with the “The Joy of Cooking” / Julia Childs “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” and Emily Post’s “Etiquette” in order to perfect her homemaking and hostessing skills.  She then quickly turned her attention to serious volunteer work.  Despite the fact she worked with a number of volunteer organizations, her absolute favorite was the French-American Wives (now French -American Aid for Children, Inc. a 501(c)3 organization devoted to “making Children Come First”.)  She was laser focused and naturally progressed through the association serving time on the board and ultimately serving as president from 1984-1988.

In the later years of his career Jon was director for a number of US funded development projects modernizing the financial markets in Poland, Russia, Georgia, and India.  Eliane was by his side in each location and project managed entertaining a wonderful array of colleagues and guests.   Spending most of their retired years in both Florida and France, they felt very grateful to be able to do so.

Eliane was preceded in death by her parents, Marius and Marie Fromont, her brother, Jean-Claude, and her two sisters, Lucette and Jocelyn; her husband Jonathan, and their sons Peter Allen Bulkley and Robert D Bulkley.  She is survived by her grandchildren Annabelle and Alexander Bulkley and daughter-in-law Fabienne Bulkley; her Whitehill nieces; and her Hippeau nephews. She will be remembered by family and a special group of friends with much love, affection and respect.  A celebration of life, friends and family will be held in France in the future.