John Wesley Gibson

John Wesley Gibson 69, died at his home in Thorsby, AL, February 20, 2009. John was born November 25, 1939, at his paternal grandmother's home in Springfield, SC, the second son of Mary Ellen (Mit) Phillips and Hammond Pete Gibson. John graduated in 1957 from Summerton High School in Summerton, SC, and earned his BS in 1961 from Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC, where he pitched baseball his senior year. Upon graduation, he served two years of active duty as an infantry officer in the US Army in Erlangen, Germany. While there he met and married Evelyn (Margo) Smith in November of 1963. After returning home to the U.S., they had two sons, Wesley and Phillip. They moved about the Southeast working in first the petroleum and then the apparel industry. In 1978, John opened his own apparel contracting company, Jemison Sportswear, in Jemison, AL. John sold his company to Garan Industries in 1992 and continued to manage the plant for three years. John then continued his involvement in the sewing industry working with Liberty Childrenswear of Birmingham and Alagold Corp. of Montgomery, AL, which took him to such places as Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Bulgaria. After his retirement, John continued to stay active working occasionally as a consultant and as a part-time hardware salesman. John served as Co-President of the Agape Sunday School class at First United Methodist Church and as a member of the Memorial Committee. He enjoyed golf, gardening and spending time with his family. He was a devoted husband, father, friend and ever the gentleman. John is survived by his wife of 45 years, Margo Smith Gibson; his two sons, John Wesley (Theresa Anderson) Gibson, Jr. of McAllen, TX and Phillip Duval Gibson of Hartford, CT; two brothers, Hammond Pete (Linda) Gibson, Jr. of Ridgeway, SC, and William Joseph Gibson of Orangeburg, SC; his mother-in-law Evelyn Smith of Hoover, AL; his sister-in-law Judy S. (David) Funk of Hoover, AL; his brother-in-law Claude J. (Marie) Smith of Jacksonville, FL; four nieces and six nephews. A memorial service will be held at Clanton First United Methodist Church Monday, February 23, at 4:00. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Clanton First United Methodist Church building fund or the Chilton County Humane Society.