Obituary of Jack D. Gibbons

Jack D. Gibbons, 88, of Midland, passed away Friday, April 26, 2019, at MidMichigan Medical Center. He was born November 3, 1930, in Pontiac, to Vernon and Eileen (Grubb) Gibbons. Jack graduated from Pontiac High School in 1948. He entered the U.S. Navy in 1950, where he worked as an Air Traffic Controller during the Korean Conflict. Upon his Naval discharge in 1954, he became employed by the IBM Corporation as a typewriter repairman and moved to Midland. There, he met the love of his life, Doris A. Drew. Doris worked at Dow Chemical and she soon had the best working typewriter in the company! Jack was then hired by Dow as a purchasing agent and he and Doris were married on June 4, 1956. They were married for 62 years and raised 3 children together. After 30 years of service, Jack retired from Dow in 1986. Jack was always an avid fisherman, enjoying countless fishing trips in northern Michigan with this dad and the rest of the "Curbstone Gamblers" gang. He also enjoyed NASCAR racing, snowmobiling and playing bridge with Doris and a group of very special friends. Over the years, Jack turned his love of fishing into a business and he became a licensed charter boat captain. With Doris as his "First Mate", they chartered fishing trips in Lake Huron at Oscoda for over 15 years. He also loved Friday afternoon cocktail hour at their place, with his kids and anyone else who could make it! Jack always enjoyed volunteering for organizations he cared about. He was very active in Midland Junior Achievement for many years. Once he got into boating, he became involved with the U.S. Power Squadron, where he taught both boating safety and marine navigation courses for several years. He was also very active in the Michigan Charter Boat Association during his time as a charter boat captain. Jack was a lifetime member of Midland's Berryhill American Legion, Post 165. Jack is survived by his wife, Doris; his children, Lori (Mike) Badour of Midland, Brad Gibbons and his fiancé Jeanette Clark of Lake City, and Chev (Matt) Gardner of Midland; his grandchildren, Bethany (Ryan) Bartlett and Brian Shangle of Midland, Kalie Taylor of Bay City, and Ryan (Kristen) Gibbons, Niki Gibbons, and Eric Gibbons of Denton, Texas; as well as his great-grandchildren, Austin Bartlett and Madilyn Bartlett of Midland, and many special nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Barbara Fitzgerald. Cremation has taken place, per Jack's wishes and a private memorial service will be held for family at a later date. To sign online guestbook, visit www.cremationsocietymidmi.com. Jack's family would like to express our heartfelt thanks to the staff at Bickford Senior Living in Midland, the doctor and nursing staff at MidMichigan Medical Center (ER, 4600, 5100 and 5200 wings), and the Home Care providers at MidMichigan Hospice and MidMichigan Palliative Care.