Vara Elizabeth Holton Gibbons' Obituary
Born December 24, 1944 in San Antonio, Texas, she was the first of two children of Helen Trudi Reece and Raburn Robert Holton. Her father called her “Betsy”. Everyone else knew her as “Beth”. She lived in Wellington, Plainview, Muleshoe and Ft. Worth, Texas before moving to Garland in 1958 where she attended Garland Public Schools. She was a member of Orchard Hills Baptist Church in Garland. There she met her future husband, James Leonard Gibbons. They were married in the church on February 16, 1962. Her father performed the ceremony. Two children, a son, James Rayburn Gibbons, born on August 25, 1963 and a daughter Janet Renae Gibbons, born on July 21, 1967, blessed this marriage. Already in her 40s, Beth began her college studies in the mid 1980s. She had the joy and privilege of attending classes and studying with her daughter, Janet. She attained an Associate’s Degree from Richland Community College, a Bachelor of Science Degree from Southwestern Allied Health School at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center of Dallas and a Masters Degree from East Texas State University, now Texas A&M, in Commerce. A Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), her career included Dallas County Mental Health, Mental Retardation, Counseling Institute of Irving and B. G. Counseling, a practice she started in 1999 and continued until her retirement in 2008. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in September of 2011. A very private person, she asked that only her children and favorite uncle, Charles M. Reece, be made aware of her condition, a request her husband honored until the very end. She died at 6:03 pm on Sunday, February 5, 2017 in the Baylor-Scott & White Hospital in Garland. She was 72 years, 1 month and 11 days old. Her husband was at her bedside. Her death came just 11 days before their 55th wedding anniversary. Beth was a kind, caring and compassionate person. She always saw the good in people and believed they did the best they could under their present circumstances. She loved without reservation. She had a beautiful smile that brought joy to all who knew her. She will be missed. She is preceded in death by her parents and is survived by her husband, James L. Gibbons, son James R. Gibbons and special friend Marki Hutchinson, daughter Janet R. Gibbons and husband John Noruk; sister, Barbara Anne Holton; grandchildren: James, Jason, Jacob, Jonathan, Jessica and Josiah Noruk; nieces, nephews and friends. A graveside memorial service was held on Friday, February 10, 2017 at the Restland Memorial Park in Dallas. The family wishes to thank the staffs at Baylor-Scott & White Hospital in Garland, the Rittenhouse Village at Spring Creek (formerly Winters Park), Higher Standards Home Health and Dr. Laila Hirjee for their kind and considerate care.
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