Amy Leigh Gibbs

1965 - 2018

Amy Leigh Gibbs

St. Gallen, Switzerland - Amy Leigh Gibbs, daughter of Rev. Dr. Lewis Gibbs and Rev. Dottie Gibbs of Asheville, died in her sleep on August 5, 2018, in St. Gallen, Switzerland, where she had lived since 1995.

Amy was born in Statesville, NC, on November 30, 1965, and lived in several cities in North Carolina where her father pastored churches. She was a 1984 graduate of A.C. Reynolds High School and was graduated with a B.A. degree in French from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1987. She worked as an event planner in Washington, DC, and Greensboro, NC, prior to moving to Switzerland. She was a teacher of English and French in St. Gallen before the birth of her twins in 2000. More recently she tutored immigrant children in English.

In addition to her parents, she is survived by her children, Luca, Marie-Chantal and Emily Canclini of St. Gallen; her brothers, Mark and his wife Janice of Asheville and John and his wife Lisa of Greensboro; five nieces and nephews, Hannah Schauer and her husband Kipper, Sarah Jane Gibbs, Jack Gibbs, Bailey Gibbs and Annie Gray Gibbs; a number of uncles, aunts and cousins; and her former husbands, Camillo Canclini of St. Gallen and Steve Koegel, of Potsdam, Germany.

Amy was excited that she had what she referred to as a "radical reformation of my faith" that brought her joy. Although she struggled with depression and PTSD for decades, her life was best summarized by her daughter Emily: "She was really creative and expressed that through her passion, which was painting. She was lovely, kind, cordial, gracious, compassionate, soft and, from the bottom of her heart, warm. She always had an open ear for her children and tried to support them any way she could. She was good in every way possible, and we loved her with all our hearts."

A Memorial Service will be held at Covenant Community UMC, 12 Rocket Drive, Asheville, on Sunday, October 14, at 2:30 pm. Committal will be in Givens Estates Bell Memorial Gardens and Columbarium. Memorials may be given to Covenant Community UMC at the above address or to one's favorite charity.