Barbara Sibio, 80 years old, died of cancer peacefully in her sleep at her home in Cloverdale, California, early in the morning of July 12, 2018.
She was born on March 19th, 1938 in Camden, NJ to Richard Conrad Thiede and Virginia Ruth Thiede. She grew up in Cranford, NJ, where she attended the Sherman School and graduated from Cranford High School in 1955. She had one sibling, an older brother named Richard whom she adored.
In high school, Barbara wrote an essay that won a scholarship to Upsala College, but after a year she left to work as a secretary at Toms River Chemical. She later returned to Georgian Court College to complete a BA in Psychology, graduating in 1978 Summa Cum Laude. She and her first husband, Robert G. Rose, who worked for the State Department, lived in Ghana and Indonesia. They traveled the world before settling in Toms River, New Jersey. She loved New Jersey and every summer day took her two daughters “down the shore.” She remained a lifelong Bruce Springsteen fan.
Barbara worked at Lakehurst Naval Air Base, Middle Tennessee State University, the Presidio in San Francisco, and the Environmental Discovery Center in Sonoma. She and her second husband, John Sibio, lived in Marin and Sonoma, where they hiked and picnicked in state parks, wineries, and beaches. They especially loved Yosemite.
Barbara was passionate about the environment and human rights. A member of the North American Bluebird Society, she oversaw a successful nesting site in her garden that produced two broods a year. She volunteered for voter registration and became an ordained minister to marry same-sex couples. Always elegant and beautiful, she modeled for fund-raisers well into her senior years. She dedicated herself to The United Church of Cloverdale (UCC), serving actively on committees such as Hospitality, Food Pantry, the Thrift Shop, and the Backpack Project. After years tending a plot in the Cloverdale Community Garden, she created and maintained a garden at the UCC that will be named The Barbara Sibio Memorial Garden.
She will also be remembered as an animal lover, an active member of the Cloverdale library, a film and theater enthusiast, and an excellent conversationalist with a delightful wit. Anyone who ever met her always said the same thing: “Barbara’s classy.”
She’s preceded in death by her parents, Richard and Virginia, her brother, Richard Conrad Thiede Jr., her husband John Sibio, and her stepson, Johnny.
Barbara is survived by her daughters Elisabeth (“Lisa”) Rose and Laura Hall, her son-in-law Alby Lanser, her stepsons Michael, Jeffrey, and Stephen Sibio, her sister-in-law Bobbi Thiede, her nephew Richard Thiede, and her grandchildren Delaney Rose (27), Cameron Hall (24), Chelsea Rose (20), and Courtney Rose (16).
The memorial service and dedication of the garden will be held on Saturday, July 28th at 3:00 PM at The United Church of Cloverdale at 439 North Cloverdale Boulevard, Cloverdale, CA 95425. For more information call the church office at 707-894-2039.
