Nancy Ball Gibbs of Grand Rapids, Michigan passed away in the early hours of Sunday, September 13, 2026. She was born on August 15, 1939, the only child of William and Florence (Leupold) Ball of Philadelphia. After graduating from Frankford High School, Nancy earned a degree in English at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, in 1961, followed by a master’s degree in education from Temple University. She then taught ninth-grade English in the Abingdon School District until her marriage to D. Clark Gibbs on January 30, 1965. The two lived all over the country as Clark pursued his careers in the Navy and the nuclear industry, finally retiring near their children and grandchildren in Grand Rapids and for several years in Oxford, Mississippi.

Nancy and Clark raised three daughters: Elizabeth Gibbs of Holland, Michigan, Jennifer Meyer (Rich) of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Bonnie Green (Chris) of Columbus, Ohio. Especially when the girls were younger, they visited a great number of national parks, and traveled in order to hike, ski, or visit family. Nancy skied until she was almost 60 years old. Nancy and Clark regularly traveled overseas to places like Iceland and Japan, and many times to Europe.

Later in life Nancy became fascinated with genealogy, first tracking down her own ancestry and then spending considerable time volunteering at her local libraries helping others get started with their research.

In addition to her daughters and Clark, her husband of 61 years, Nancy is survived by seven grandchildren: Jessica Mellen (Andrew), Heather Qin (Steve), Madeline Meyer (Henry), Hadley Green, Hudson Green, Sebastian Green, and Naomi Green; and three great-grandchildren: Paige Mellen, Caspian Qin, and Tasman Qin.