Patricia Ann Gribble, 88, of Gering, NE went to be with the Lord on December 27, 2023. Her children will honor her memory with a memorial service 2pm Saturday, April 27, 2024 at the Gering Central Church of Christ, Gering, NE. Cremation has taken place. Memorial gifts may be given to Gering Central Church of Christ or Summit Christian College. Online condolences may be made by viewing Pat’s memorial page at www.bridgmanfuneralhome.com. Bridgman Funeral Home and Cremation Service is assisting the family.
Pat was born on May 28, 1935, in Centerline, Michigan, to Ira and Mildred (Ball) Atkins. She graduated from Mt. Clemons High School in the spring of 1953 and married her high school sweetheart and lifelong best friend, Thomas Fuller Gribble, on October 10, 1953.
The young couple had four children in rapid succession, and Pat was a devoted wife and fun-loving mom. She and Tom made up the rules for triple-handed pinochle, and they played hundreds of pinochle games with their four children as soon as the youngest could hold the cards. Pat’s partner was always her son, Scott. The family went hiking and camping in the summer, hunting in the fall, and ice-skating and tobogganing in the winter.
Pat loved music, and not only was music often playing in the house, but she encouraged her children to learn an instrument and then served as the family bandleader. Although Tom never played an instrument he served as an appreciative audience during music sessions.
Pat was happiest when she could take care of someone she loved. Over the decades of her life, Pat demonstrated her love and care for others by cooking thousands of family dinners, baking tens of thousands of cookies for others to eat and frequently checking in with friends just to say hello. She always knew everyone’s favorite type of pie or cookie and liked to have it ready for them when they came to visit.
Pat and Tom moved several times during their marriage, from California to Michigan, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Alaska, and Oklahoma before settling in Gering, Nebraska during retirement. Wherever they went, Pat settled in and made it home, nurturing family, making friends, and planting a garden. Gardening in Alaska was a challenge, but her gardens in Oklahoma and Nebraska were legendary.
Pat and Tom loved to dance together. They danced in the kitchen, at square dance sessions and polka festivals, and at the Gering Senior Center until Tom’s passing in 2018.
Pat is survived by her four children Bill Gribble (wife Lynn), Scott Gribble (wife Tammey), Peggy McCrackin (nee Gribble), and Penny Stine (nee Gribble, husband Kent); nine grandchildren; twelve great-grandchildren; and two great-great-granddaughters.
Pat was preceded in death by her beloved husband Tom; her parents; sister Virginia Borowski; and grandson Had Stine.
