Gary Ann GIOVANNI

GIOVANNI Gary Ann Giovanni was called home by her Mother on Wednesday, 10 August 2005, from Montgomery Regional Hospital. She was born on 2 September 1940 in Knoxville, Tennessee, the oldest child of Yolande Cornelia and Jones "Gus' Giovanni. As a child, Gary Giovanni-along with her sister Nikki and cousins William and Terry-spent her summers in Knoxville, Tennessee, with her maternal grandparents. At night, after the children had been put to bed and presumably were asleep, Gary's Grandmother would come to the back porch and call out to Gary, her oldest grandchild. William and Terry would be fast asleep after a day of climbing trees and playing ball and all the other things boys do when they are visiting their grandparents in the summer. Gary would be awake because she knew her Grandmother would come for her. Nikki was also usually awake because she is a light sleeper. Grandmother would be planning to take Gary to the circus or to get fresh fried fish or to do whatever it is that grandmothers do with favorite older granddaughters. Sometimes Nikki would let Grandmother know she was awake; other times, she would just dream about going. She believes that her Mother did the same thing on Wednesday, 10 August 2005, by calling Gary for the final adventure. Gary and Nikki's father, Gus, was notorious about being on time. His college education was paid for by his athletic ability; after graduation he refereed for what was called pocket change. One day, when Gary was just a toddler, she and her Mother were going with Gus to his "pocket change' job of refereeing local basketball games. For some reason, Gary's outfit had to be changed, which upset Gus. Even though Gary was just a little girl, Gus nagged and nagged. Finally, the three of them set out walking to the game (in those days, everyone walked everywhere). As they started up Payne Street, the last stage of their journey and the steepest, Gus was still saying "I should have left you at home...' and nattering on. The story goes that Gary waited until they crested the hill then turned to him and said "Well just (n)eave me then! Just (n)eave me.' She might not have been able to pronounce her l's yet, but her sense of timing was perfect. Gary was a piano prodigy. Her father would awaken her when his friends visited to ask her to perform Clair de Lune or Rhapsody in Blue. She made Jabberwock every year. She modeled. She knitted beautiful sweaters. Her Mother was a great country cook, but Gary was a gourmet (a talent she either learned or inherited from her Grandmother). Gary also made beautiful stained glass lamp shades. And she grew a pretty good garden. A youthful flirtation led to her early decision to marry and discontinue college. After her divorce and a few years in the work force, she met and married Joe Black, the first African American to pitch baseball in a World Series. She and Joe had a son, Christopher, now of Honolulu, Hawaii. Later, Gary accepted a position in community affairs with SeaLand, where she became very active with the Oakland Theatre and other art projects. As a younger woman she had been a part of the group that went to Mississippi to help Fannie Lou Hamer deliver Christmas turkeys. Gary always considered Mrs. Hamer a beacon of courage and light and was always very proud of the small part she played in the Civil Rights struggle. At SeaLand, she initiated Christmas turkeys in poverty-stricken Oakland. After the death of her father, Gary invited her Mother to come live with her in California for a while. That "while' stretched into six years; when Gary took early retirement in 2004, they both moved to Blacksburg and continued to make their home together. The Virginia years were fun years. Gary taught cooking classes, worked with the YMCA on the big Crafts Fair, joined the Lyric Theatre board, and enjoyed a close relationship with St. Paul AME church and the wonderful people there. Gary and Nikki shared a room in their first homes: on Burns Avenue and then on Jackson Street. As Nikki sat with Gary on what proved to be Gary's last night, she thought of the ultimate room she and her sister had shared: their Mother. Just as their Grandmother would tiptoe in and call Gary for a special treat, Nikki believes their Mother visited Gary's hospital room and whispered for Gary to come along. Even though Nikki was awake, they snuck out together. Gary is survived by her son, Christopher Black, of Honolulu, Hawaii; her sister, Nikki Giovanni, of Christiansburg, Virginia; her aunts, Ann Ford of Vacaville, California, and Agnes Marsh, of Blacksburg, Virginia; and her nephew, Thomas Giovanni, of New York City. Visitation will be on Saturday, 13 August, from 10-11 A.M. at McCoy Funeral Home, and will be followed by a memorial service at 11 A.M., also at McCoy Funeral Home. Graveside services will be held on Sunday, 14 August, at 1 P.M. at Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio.