Woman was an inspiration to others fighting ALS
It took two hands for June Gibble to hold the paint brush -- with her body surrendering to the debilitating effects of ALS -- but she was determined to give each of her grandchildren a gift before she died.
In late August, Mrs. Gibble finished the last of 18 paintings for her 18 grandchildren, memories they can hold on to beyond seeing their ailing grandmother in the hospital.
Mrs. Gibble, whose battle with ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, was documented in a 2006 Daily Herald article, died Sept. 20 at home in Elgin. She was 70.
"Looking at the last year-and-a-half, it was the most rewarding time of my life," said her husband, Jay Gibble. "It was rich, it was full and life was purposeful. She is the love of my life and I miss her, but I know it was the time for her go."
When June and Jay married in 1982, they brought together six children from previous marriages.
Today, there are 18 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
"Even though my sister and I are her biological children, she embraced all of Jay's children and really was the centerpiece that made us into one big family," said Laurie Hoecherl, Mrs. Gibble's youngest daughter. "She wore a mother ring that had the birthstones of the six children. That symbolizes how important family was to her."
Family and friends say Mrs. Gibble had a particular ability to connect with children.
Her daughters and grandchildren remember Mrs. Gibble as a "sit-on-the-floor mother and grandmother." She was always on the floor playing jacks and marbles, doing puzzles and helping out with homework.
"We made puzzles a lot together and she wrote poems to me and gave me a painting," said granddaughter Carly Hoecherl, 14. "The painting is a sunset and us in Florida."
One of Mrs. Gibble's paintings was selected for the ALS 2008 calendar.
Known as Grandma June, both to her family and those who knew her, Mrs. Gibble lived her life to the fullest, said Brenda Morrison, her eldest daughter.
"She did everything with love, and even her illness, she handled that with grace," Morrison said. "She really just did everything with a smile and shared loved everywhere she went."
After graduating with a bachelor of arts from Bridgewater College in Virginia in 1959, where she graduated magna cum laude, Mrs. Gibble taught preschool and elementary school in Maryland.
In 1987, Mrs. Gibble earned her Master's of Divinity from Bethany Theological Seminary in Oak Brook.
Mrs. Gibble, an active member of the Highland Avenue Church of the Brethren in Elgin for the past 20 years, was ordained as a minister in 1986.
At the Church of the Brethren, Mrs. Gibble served as a Sunday school teacher, mentor, choir leader and deacon for more than three decades.
"She did special work with children and teens in Christian education," said Jim Lehman, a friend of more than 30 years and a member of the church. "One of the things June believed in doing was helping children do things well."
In addition, June was the director of congregational nurture and worship for the Church of the Brethren General Board in Elgin from 1987 to 1997.
After retiring from full-time pastoral work, Mrs. Gibble was a chaplain at Provena St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin until November 2006.
Survivors include her husband, six children; Laurie Hoecherl, Brenda Morrison, Peg Gibble, Jim Gibble, Pam Chestnut, and Doug Gibble; 18 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; her father David Adams; and three brothers and sisters.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Highland Avenue Church of the Brethren, 783 W. Highland Ave., Elgin. Choral and instrumental music will precede the service at 12:30 p.m. and a reception will follow.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Highland Avenue Church of the Brethren Memorial Fund for Children and Youth Ministries, 783 W. Highland Ave., Elgin, and the Les Turner ALS Foundation, 5550 W. Touhy Ave., Suite 302, Skokie, IL 60077.