Obituary of Gladys Marie Lybeck

Gladys Marie Johnson Lybeck, 98, passed away on June 4, 2019 in Tucson, Arizona. Gladys Marie Johnson Lybeck was born 12/17/1920 on the family farm in Kidder County, North Dakota. She is pre-deceased by parents Hans and Dina Johnson, and siblings Alta Johnson, Lily and Bill Bower, Palma and Joe Larson, Ed Johnson, Helen and Russ Keller, and Judith and Clois Hetletved. She is survived by sister-in-law Adelaide Johnson, sons Gerry (Lynn Ann), Dennis, Lynn Vernon, Keith (Brigitte), and Curt and grandchildren, Eric (Karan) Stewart Lybeck, Eve, Erin (Nicolas) Lybeck Arroyo, Megan (Neil) Lybeck Atchley, Steve, Stacy, and Tiffany (Chuck) Horton, and great-grandchildren Faith Lybeck, Nia Lybeck, Hunter and Hannah Horton, and Amelia Lybeck-Arroyo and by many nieces and nephews. Gladys graduated from Tuttle High School in 1938 and earned an Associate's Degree in Business from The North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, ND in1940. After working as a secretary for a couple of years she married her high school sweetheart, Vernon G. Lybeck, on 10/21/1942. After their marriage they were stationed in Nashville, Tennessee with the Army Air Corps. Early in 1944 Vernon was stationed in England and Gladys returned to North Dakota to give birth to the eldest son, Gerry. After the war, the young couple moved to Southern Arizona where Vernon worked at various newspapers including the Willcox Range News, the Tombstone Epitaph, the Tucson Citizen and the Arizona Daily Star. Gladys raised her five young sons and when all were in school she went back to work at various jobs until she landed the job of clerk of the Amphitheater High School library where she worked for ten years (probably to keep an eye on her sons). After all of their sons had successfully navigated through Amphitheater Public Schools, Vernon and Gladys moved to Phoenix where he worked for the Arizona Republic and she worked odd jobs but concentrated on her crafts and entertaining her grandkids when they came to visit. After retirement, Gladys and Vernon moved back to Tucson to be closer to their grandkids. They spent their time attending their grandkids activities, doing crafts and traveling. They had been married over 60 years when Vernon passed in April of 2003. Gladys' memorial service will be held on Thursday, June 13, 2019, 2:00 pm at the Adair Funeral Homes Inc., Avalon Chapel, 8090 N. Northern, Oro Valley, AZ, with Mark Bickerton officiating. Burial will be a private service in the East Lawn Palms Cemetery. In of lieu flowers please make a donation to Youth on Their Own. Online condolences can be given at adairfuneralhomes.com.