Betsy Patton Johnson

Joanne and I became friends in 7^th grade.  I have been pondering these past days, how do you encapsulate 55 years of friendship in a couple of paragraphs?  Adventures?  Of course, some getting us into trouble, some just a wonderful experience, others leaving us laughing so hard we could barely catch our breath.  Joanne was a strong, extremely bright, young woman, and woman.  Her dry sense of humor left some speechless, me, always laughing.  Did she possess strong opinions?  You bet, especially when it came to politics, and if you wanted to disagree with her, you had better know your facts.

As was mentioned, Joanne was an artist, and especially talented in mosaics.  I am fortunate enough to have several of her pieces.  My favorite was a surprise from her.  We were meeting at the beach (which we did every year for many years) she knew I was driving back home with my sister, so I had a way to transport a heavy stepping stone.  The stepping stone was gingko leaves, the symbol of friendship.  It sits in a special place in my garden.

Joanne and I spent four days at the beach this October.  Although she was still recovering from her illness, we did all of our usual activities, and of course her favorite, sitting on the beach in the late afternoon just talking.  The unexpected loss of my dearest friend has left a void in my life.  As memories surface there is comfort.  I will miss her terribly.

Joanne was my son's Godmother.  These are the words he wished to share.

I was sad to hear about the passing of Joanne Gibbs; or as I knew her, Aunt Joanne. Even though I met her a limited amount of times she was the best godmother. Whether it be talking on the phone for a few minutes or getting a birthday card every year. She would even make sure to make an extra amount of Christmas cookies since I would eat them all in a few days. Just this past Christmas she made even more since my wife developed a taste for them also. I will definitely miss the little conversations we would have on the phone. She was always interested what I was up too and loved the fact my wife and I are working and living abroad. 

 I hope this gives you some comfort that she was the best godmother a guy could ask for and I will miss her.

 Love Tal

Kate, I am fortunate enough to have several pieces of Joanne’s work. This is my favorite, we met at the beach every summer, and this particular year she knew I was driving back to NY with my sister, so I could transport the stepping stone. She did ginkgo leaves, the symbol of friendship. We were just together in Neptune the first of October. I am heartbroken.

Hey, Sorry I missed you at the reunion. Got my Adelphian last week, loved the blurb on you being a "first woman". Picture was great, brought back memories of the many days we spent swimming at FYC.

Posted on: Mar 29, 2018 at 1:43 PM

Well, hello and welcome, sriend!

Posted on: Jan 28, 2016 at 11:25 AM

Hey Dennis,
Have thought about you often, so happy to see you made it to the website after all these years. Sounds like all is well with you, all is good with me too. Keep in touch.

Happy Birthday Harriet, have a wonderful day! Need to let me know the next time you plan some shenanigans with Joanne.

Posted on: Aug 10, 2015 at 8:34 AM

Happy Birthday Richard, hope you have a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday Patty! Hope it is a great day for you.

Happy Birthday Lucretia, you always had the best birthday parties when we were at Fishweir.

Happy Birthday Harriet. You must let me know when you are going to visit Jax, now that I am retired, I will make sure to be there, so you Joanne and I can "beach it"