The following tribute was written by Howard Gibson, loving husband to Joy L. Gibson, of 42 years.
Joy L Gibson, born January 6th, 1952 in Galveston, Texas passed away on April 27th, 2024.
Adopted by Jim and Irene Robinson of Texas, City. She had 3 sons when we met.
We went on our First Date February 27th, 1981.
We met at a SWB building, she retired from SWB/ATT with 31 years of service. I was adding onto the building.
Joy started to work for SWB in January 1981.
She said it was Love at First Sight for her. I fell in love with her on our first date. We married February 27th, 1982.
Her ex had her 3 boys.
We had our first son in March 1985.
She was pregnant with our 2nd son in 1987.
That was when her ex gave up parental rights to her first 3 sons.
I adopted her sons as my own.
After we started dating, I took Joy to meet my family in Missouri. They all loved her from the first time the first time they met. Joy loved my home town. All of my family and friends.
I took her to Meramec Springs Park outside of my hometown.
She said it was the most beautiful. Joy is in the most beautiful most perfect woman I have even known. She is sweet, kind, fun loving and always had a big beautiful smile. She is an amazing mother. She may have let me change a diaper on our babies 3-4 times. She said it was her job.
She raised our grandson Andrew from the day he was born to age 6 when his mother and the court took Andrew away from us. Andrew was born December 1, 2012. Joy loves him so very much. Anyone who knew her loved her.
In 1983 I bought her a garnet ring for Mother’s Day. She loved garnet it is her birthstone. They did not have a pendant as earrings to match it. So I made a sketch of what I wanted took it to West Oaks Mall to have it made. Around Christmas time it was ready.
We were going to a Christmas party in Katy that year. I rushed her to get ready. She stated that we were leaving too early. When we were near West Oaks Mall, I said you were right I left too early, let’s stop at the mall and window shop a while. We went in to look at jewelry. I had her sit down to look at something in the cart. The manager brought out what I had made for her. He opened the cast and put it in front of her.
Joy said that looks like my ring I said to try it on. I put the necklace and earrings on her. After a minute or 2 she said this is to expensive I need to take it off. I told her, you can’t take it off, it is yours, Merry Christmas. She cried because I had made it for her.
We went to the party. All the women at the party saw she had been crying and they gathered around her to see if I had been bad to her. She said “he just gave this to me for Christmas.” I never wanted her to cry. But happy tears are okay. I would buy her flowers. When she got the flowers she would cry happy tears. But when the flowers would die she would cry sad tears. I would tell her I don’t like it when your eyes leak baby. So I started buying silk flowers so they would not die and she would have to cry.
We met Edwin and Ruby and their children. We became wonderful friends. They said we are family. They loved Joy. We would go to their farm in Brookshire to watch the baby calves and baby goats play. Joy would laugh and smile at the way they would run and jump around.
We would walk hand in hand to look at the flowers in the field. She loved that.
I would tell her you are beautiful. She would say I made her beautiful.
February 27th, 2024 we were married 42 years. But we have been dating 43 years every day with her is a date. Every day with her is special. I tried to show her everyday how much I love her. How much she meant to me. She told me she wanted to be buried wearing her Christmas garnets in my hometown near my family that loved her so much. We will be buried ion the Saint James Cemetery in St. James, Missouri. I told her I will never take off my wedding ring because I love her so much.
Joy is my wife. The mother of our children. My cheerleader. My best friend. The love of my life. She is my beautiful sweet cakes and I am her Hun. She had dementia for the last 2 years I retired to Care For her. Because I swore an oath to her on our wedding date. Every day with Joy is special.
43 years is not enough. Joy’s 5 boys and grandchild and her friends will miss this wonderful woman. But they will not forget her. I will miss my beautiful sweetcakes. Most of all. And we will be together again in Heaven.
Before she passed I told her repeatedly how much I love her and to go to heaven and find her daddy and my brother Orville that she loved so much. Find my Dad and stepmother and my grandpa and grandma. Stay with them because they love her so much. I will come to heaven and find you. We will be together forever and ever and ever and more ever after that. I will miss you. But I will never forget you baby doll. You are the love of my life.
A visitation for Joy will be held Wednesday, May 1, 2024 from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM at Katy Funeral Home, 23350 Kingsland Blvd, KATY, TX 77494.
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