Margaret Gibbons, 96, Was Faithful, Generous

Margaret (Maggie) Gibbons died Dec. 31 at Moorings Park, Naples, Fla.

Born Margaret Francis, in 1910, in New City, N.Y., as a direct Blauvelt descendent, she lived in the ancestral family home, which is now the residence of The Historical Society of Rockland County.

She attended the Dwight School for Girls in Englewood, N.J., the Racine School and Columbia School of Business, and enjoyed a brief career as a Powers model before marrying John L. (Jack) Gibbons and settling into a lifelong role a helpmate, mother and community volunteer.

Known for her sense of humor and cheerful generosity, Maggie never went anywhere empty-handed. Hers was a life devoted to others. In the 1960s, she helped establish a state-of-the-art radiation center at Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, N.Y. On Martha's Vineyard, where she summered for 53 years, she devoted time to the Community Services Thrift Shop, the Martha's Vineyard Hospital and the Dukes County Historical Society. Most especially, wherever she was, her church was uppermost. A faithful Altar Guild participant, Maggie lived as she believed.

Survivors include her son, John B. Gibbons and his wife, Judy, of Harrington Park, N.J.; two daughters, Molly Marx and her husband, Arthur, of Martha's Vineyard, and Sally Dunkley and her husband, Malcolm, of Naples, Fla.; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

Interment will be private in Nyack, N.Y. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Maggie's honor may be made to Hospice of Naples, 1095 Whippoorwill Lane, Naples, FL 34105.