Jane Asare

Esther Williams

Twin Creek Cremation & Funeral Services

Michael Gibson

Michael James Gibson lost his decades-long battle with liver disease shortly before noon on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at Mercy Hospital in Oklahoma City. Gibson was 74. A memorial service in Gibson’s honor will be held at 1 p.m., on Saturday, May 17, 2025 at the Midwest City Free Methodist Church (6500 East Reno, Midwest City). Attendees are asked to enter at the east end of the church. Gibson’s longtime friend, Rev. Deacon Lynn Christophersen, will officiate. Gibson had been in prison since age 18, having been arrested during his senior year at Carl Albert High School in Midwest City for a murder he was involved in. He served 56 years in confinement, even though he had been recommended for release three times. Each time Gibson was unsuccessful in securing the governor’s signature. Michael Gibson was born in Beeville, Texas, on December 16, 1950, to James and Lou Gibson. A few months later the family moved to Montana where his father took a job working in the oil field. It was in Montana where Michael Gibson contracted polio at age 2. He survived but wore leg braces for a time while rebuilding his strength. The Gibson family, including older sister Dixie and younger sister Patsy plus Michael, moved to Oklahoma in 1957, where James Gibson had relatives in Coal County. James Gibson, a World War II combat veteran, took a job at Tinker Air Force Base. Shortly after, the family bought a house in Midwest City which is now the home of Michael’s sister, Patsy Gibson. Michael Gibson treasured warm memories of spending summers in rural southeast Oklahoma on the banks of Muddy Boggy Creek. Aunt Gladys Sandmann played host to Michael, Patsy and Dixie. These were his Huck Finn days that Michael never tired of revisiting, recalling adventures with his snake-catching dog, Major. In high school Gibson became a voracious reader, often playing hooky to read about the adventures of Japanese samurai - and to huff gold paint. His drug habit led him into trouble, culminating in the tragic night of December 28, 1968, when he participated in the death of a Midwest City man. After his 1969 trial, Gibson was sent to McAlester prison in June. On July 20, 1969, two prison guards rolled a black-and-white television down the run so Gibson and a few other prisoners could watch Neil Armstrong stepping onto the moon’s surface. Gibson later was transferred to the prison in Stringtown, and finally to Joseph Harp prison in Lexington, where he remained until the end. About 1981 Gibson married Evelyn Sanders. They remained a couple until her death in a vehicle accident in 1984. In 1990 Gibson’s life changed drastically after he joined the Lifeline drug treatment program at Joseph Harp prison. Afterward, Gibson entered an 18-month training program to become a peer counselor at the prison. He remained clean and sober from that time. Gibson, along with his beloved cellmate Bo Cox who left prison in 2003, led weekly recovery meetings at Harp until Gibson’s death. Among the training staff for the counseling certification was Nancy Dees. She and Gibson remained faithful friends until the end of her life in 2023. During his decades of incarceration at Joseph Harp prison, Gibson developed a wide circle of friends and acquaintances among prisoners and staff. Somewhere along the way, he became Gibby. For his last commutation application, which had yet to be filed, Gibson had letters of support from dozens of individuals, including three retired prison wardens. At the prison, Gibby was known as a gifted leather craftsman, making belts, purses, E-tablet covers, and other items on demand. He was especially talented at cleaning and restoring western saddles. Among other prisoners, Gibson was known as the man who could repair boots and shoes for a fraction of the cost of a new pair. Frequently he was paid in bags of coffee. Or not paid at all. When Financial Aid Pell grants recently were restored for prison inmates, Gibson returned to college classes to finish a degree he had begun 30 years earlier. He was due to graduate with an associate degree from Rose State College in May. Gibson’s classmates and professors petitioned the college to grant his degree posthumously. His cap and gown were intended to rest on an empty chair at the ceremony. Gibson also worked for decades for Oklahoma Correctional Industries where he digitized printed material for clients. Before that, he was an accomplished telemarketer, selling VHS tapes on hunting and fishing to retail sports stores.    One of the OCI companies he worked for paid in to Social Security for him. Gibson would have been entitled to $400 monthly from Social Security had he been freed. Playing dominoes and softball are two recreational activities for which Gibson was famous. He was also well known for his propensity to lose at Scrabble to his nemesis, Lynn Christophersen. Gibson is survived by his sisters, Patsy Gibson, of Midwest City, and Dixie La Fave, of Santa Cruz, CA.  Also surviving him are his niece Gina Hood, his great-niece Taryn Johnston, her husband Nate and their two children, Kimber and Kash, all of central Oklahoma. Other survivors are Gibson’s nephew Michael Scott La Fave, of southern California, and niece Katrina Hector, of Portland. Gibson is preceded in death by his parents.

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Michael Gibson Obituary | Twin Creek Cremation & Funeral Services