Obituary of Judith Ann Gibbons

Judith Ann Gibbons passed away peacefully early Monday morning on October, 26th, 2020 at the Good Samaritan Nursing Home in Delmar, NY. Judy was born in Wellsville, NY on October 1, 1940 to Regal and Lois (Chapman) Perry. She graduated from Wellsville Senior High School in 1958 where she was captain of the Cheerleading team, Prom Queen, and won many national skating competitions throughout the United States. After graduation, she attended SUNY Cortland where she graduated in 1962 with a degree in Mathematics and Education. She started her student teaching in Maine-Endwell, NY in 1962 and eventually became a full time mathematics teacher at Maine-Endwell High School. More significantly, Maine-Endwell is where Judy met and married her husband Philip Gibbons in May, 1965. After Maine-Endwell, Judy moved to Stillwater, Oklahoma where she completed a Master’s degree in Education and Phil completed a Doctorate in Education. All three of her children were born in Oklahoma: Mark Gibbons, Michael Gibbons, and Michelle (Gibbons) Rocklein. She will be remembered as incredibly strong, thoughtful, and very, very funny. Her life changed forever in 1972 when she was severely crippled in a car accident. What she will be remembered for is the fight, grace and dignity she displayed in how she lived the rest of her life. She loved celebrations and always called her family to sing a raucous Happy Birthday. She loved music and singing, most often in the kitchen while she cooked. She was thrilled to finally see Johnny Mathis and meet Peter, Paul, and Mary. She was a great athlete who loved sports (particularly rooting for her kids). She loved playing bingo and cards. Throughout her life she nearly always had a dog, ideally a labrador, as a companion. Judy was predeceased by her beloved husband of 42 years, Phil, in 2007. She is survived her sister and best friend Sally (Perry) Roberts of Geneseo and brother James Perry of Bemus Point; her daughter Michelle and son-law Brad Rocklein, her son Michael and daughter-in-law Catherine Gibbons of Delmar, her son Mark Gibbons of Palo Alto, California; and by her adored grandchildren: Marko, Natalia, Miles, Bodie, Grace, Maggie, Rogan, and Charlie. Relatives and friends are invited to call on Friday, Oct. 30 from 4 to 6 pm at Applebee Funeral Home, 403 Kenwood Ave., Delmar. A funeral service will be held 10 am Saturday, Oct. 31 at the funeral home. Burial will follow in Calvary Cemetery, Glenmont. Face coverings will be required and social distancing and occupancy limits will be observed for all services.