Dreams do come true, especially for this small-town girl.

Julie Dove, who grew up on Willow Lane in Princeton, is set to live out her biggest dream when she makes an appearance on NBC’s soap opera, “Days of Our Lives,” set to air Thursday, May 12.

Dove said acting has been a part of her life from a young age. She naturally gravitated toward the stage and then discovered a love for soap operas as a teenager, adding they were a “haven” for her after her father died when she was 13. 

Since then, Dove said one of her biggest dreams was to become an actor, and her top pursuit was becoming an actor in a soap opera.

Dove also had a 10-year correspondence with the actor Lauren-Marie Taylor, who is best known as Vickie from “Friday the 13th: Part 2,” and wrote fan mail to several others.

“When I was active in church, I would always want to be in skits or readings,” Dove said. “We didn’t have any drama classes or community theater growing up in Princeton, but I got involved in drama when I went to Princeton High School.”

Dove graduated from Princeton High School in 1988 and was involved in her high school theater program all four years of high school. She went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in 1991 and her master’s degree in 1993 from Texas A&M-Commerce, where she attended on an acting scholarship.

Dove says she also tries to visit Princeton when she can although there are not many people around town who recognize her, adding she usually gets text messages from her friends growing up who see her in her various shows or movies.

She also comes back to visit her mother, who still lives in Princeton.

The 52-year-old actor said pursuing acting was always a dream but was originally difficult to do because leaving the small town of Princeton was “scary.” It also took a lot of perseverance.

She did not immediately pursue a career in film or television, opting to attend seminary school and work at the radio station KPLX, which is now 99.5 The Wolf.

“I attended seminary at Southern Methodist University to become a United Methodist minister,” Dove said. “I was most interested in the preaching part of a minister, which is performing.”

While in seminary school, she realized preaching was not her true calling and decided to go into the radio business full time. To pursue her career in the music business, she moved to Nashville in 1996.

“I thought if I could help other people fulfill their creative dreams that would satisfy mine,” Dove said.

In Nashville, she also met several stars from ‘90s country, including George Strait among others. Despite enjoying aspects of fulfilling other’s creative dreams, Dove still harbored a passion for acting.

After her second divorce, Dove said she had never followed her dreams “because of fear.”

“I will regret it for the rest of my life if I don’t go for it,” she said.

Dove decided to move to Los Angeles in 2001 and has never looked back. She found a similar job in radio in the city and also began seeking acting opportunities.

“I always wanted to be an actor so I moved to LA,” Dove said. “Because I had my job, I was able to take all the acting classes I needed.”

She began auditioning for television commercials in 2002 but it almost took 10 years before Dove got her first television role. Part of that was difficulty finding a technical agent, said Dove, because she was on the older side for a fairly green actor.

Dove said she only booked one commercial and it never aired.

Her big break came in 2011, however, when she was cast as Tourist No. 1 in a show called “Happy Endings.” She said she originally read for another part.

She also knew another actor on the show who put in a word for Dove with the show’s casting director. Dove eventually received a call before filming for the show with the good news that she got the part.

“I was jumping up and down and crying and I couldn’t believe it. I was not originally picked for this part; I was the second choice. I’ve never been so happy to be second place in my life.”

After securing a part on “Happy Endings,” Dove began to get several calls for other acting gigs. She said appearing in the credits for a show is similar to a passport stamp and helps signify with being cast in other roles.

Dove was cast in roles for shows including “Criminal Minds” and “The Office.” Eagle-eyed scrollers through NBC’s streaming service, Peacock, will see Dove in the thumbnail for the episode “Free Family Portrait Studio,” where she made her guest appearance. 

She said being in demand after her first appearance was exciting. 

“I felt like the belle of the ball,” Dove said.

Dove’s favorite role was Fran Tabuto from the television show “Angie Tribeca” because Fran reminds Dove of herself.

“I am a fangirl,” Dove said. “To get to play a misunderstood fangirl on TV was really fun and cool.”

Her more recent work includes playing Jessica from accounting on the Adult Swim show “Birdgirl” and her appearance on “Days of Our Lives.”

“I’m still giddy about it and I cannot wait for it to air.”

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