Mary Ellen Bret

Doctor Mary Ellen Bret, MD, passed away at the age of 74 surrounded by her children and devoted husband Philip S. Sheridan in Dallas, Texas. She was born August 6, 1951, in Shreveport, Louisiana, to Helen Jane Gooch and William N. Bret II. They soon moved to North Dallas, where she was raised with her three younger brothers, William N. Bret, III, John Robert Bret, and Paul Bret.

From kindergarten onward, she attended Ursuline Academy in Dallas and graduated in the class of 1969; she went on to obtain her BA from the University of Dallas, studying French and spending a year abroad in Rome. Doctor Bret traveled extensively in her youth, especially in Spain and Mexico, and lived for several years in Colorado where her children, Anne, Monica and Ellen (Harry), were born. After moving back to North Dallas, she mastered in Speech Pathology at UTD in 1986 and helped patients, from young children to the elderly, regain their speech, before pursuing her medical degree. In June of 1998, she received her MD from the University of Texas Medical School of Houston and entered the field of Geriatric Psychiatry with a fellowship at UT Southwestern in Dallas. Fluent in four languages, Doctor Bret was one of the only Spanish-speaking geriatric psychiatrists, thereby greatly helping the elderly Hispanic community through her work at Parkland Hospital until her retirement in August of 2023.

She was passionate about cooking, as a gourmet-trained chef, having an extensive cookbook collection; loved spending time exploring antique shops in Galveston and trying out barbecue in Austin, exploring the latest technical devices, and having long phone conversations with her children and spoiling her grandchildren; she had a lifelong fondness for all that glitters. Mary Ellen was preceded in death by her parents and her brothers Paul and William. She is survived by her loving husband Phil, her high school sweetheart; her daughters, Anne Burgio and spouse Daniele Burgio of Connecticut; Monica Esposito of Colorado; and Ellen Harry and spouse Christophe Henrard of Belgium, with their children Austin, Abigaelle, and Stella. She is also survived by her sister-in-law Kathleen (Sheridan) Mitchell, her brother John Robert and her sisters-in-law, Victoria Bret and Laurie Bret. Finally, she is survived by a host of loving nieces, one nephew, and numerous cousins.

A life-long Catholic, Mary Ellen and her spouse were members of St Anne’s Parish. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to The Alzheimer’s Association https://www.alz.org/ or the Catholic Charities of the US https://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org

Visitation will be held at Calvary Hill Funeral Home, 3235 Lombardy Ln, Dallas, Texas 75220, on June 8, 2026, from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Calvary Hill Main Mausoleum North Chapel, 3235 Lombardy Ln, Dallas, Texas 75220, on June 9, 2026, at 1:00 pm. Entombment will follow at Calvary Hill Cemetery.