Page created by: Sylvia Gibson

Ed Gibson August 24, 1935 - May 30, 2018

Ed Gibson lived a great life filled with family, friends, travels, dogs, cars, lawn chairs, beers, movies, poetry and books. His subtle sense of humor and compassionate heart made it easy to talk with him about everything under the sun including the deeper meanings of life. He was outwardly quiet, inwardly kind, and truly interested in the well being of people around him.

Ed grew up in New Hartford, NY, with his parents and little sister Julie, who always called him, "My Eddy." In 1957 he graduated from Ohio Wesleyan and then earned a Masters of Divinity at Boston University where he met his future wife, Janet. Ed and Janet first lived in Knoxville, where Ed’s campus ministry job at the University of Tennessee led to his involvement with the civil rights movement and lunch counter sit-ins to end segregation.

Between 1963-1966 Ed worked as a campus minister with international students in Stuttgart, Germany. He and Janet traveled in their red 544 Volvo to most every country in Europe. After leaving Germany, they spent four months driving to the Middle East, flying to Egypt, shipping the “544” to California, and flying eastward around the world.

Ed taught political science and government in the community colleges and local high schools, fixed cars, wrote poetry, and worked as a handyman where he began his business card with humor: “Ed Gibson, Burned-Out Teacher”. He was an engaged, playful, and loving father with his two daughters, Sylvia and Jennifer. He liked to work on cars with his adopted son, Ray. He played tennis with his best friend, Marvin, and could often be found reading a book or writing poetry on the front porch.



At age 60, Ed was diagnosed with Parkinson’s. He was the embodiment of courage as he faced discomforts without complaint, always working with the range of mobility he had, to do the most he could. He loved to spend time with his brother and sister-in-law, Chuck & Stella Cordes; with his three grandchildren Ben, Soul and Eden; and extended family and friends. Every summer Ed could be found on the porch of his Limekiln Lake “camp” in the Adirondacks, where friends stopped by to visit. Ed's gentle nature and kind spirit made it easy to care for him at home until the end of his life. He was so thankful for his loving and capable caregivers, Marilou, Kalo, and Aurele. He was 82 years old when he died and he enjoyed the ride of life even on this last day.

He lives on in our hearts.


Ed’s Poetry:

Feet On Rail

Feet on rail, glass in hand,
I’m a porch rocking spectator
Trying to understand.

Trying to comprehend
The meaning of life:
My dog, my friends,
My teenagers and my wife.


Every Dream

Every dream must be paid for with a portion of the heart,
For it is the heart which dreams, which imagines some reality
And when reality is reached, a sliver of the heart is chipped off
Only to grow again in another dream which may become reality.