Nearly 100 Robert E. Peary High School alumni gathered for a surprise celebration to honor and thank their former teacher, Mr. Vincent Gibbs, for a lifetime of sharing his love for the performing arts, humanities and English education with his students. Mr. Gibbs, known as Mr. Christmas is in his Germantown community for the decorations and nativity scene that he puts up at his home each year, hasn’t been able to decorate due to his treatments for melanoma.
Debi Barbee, Class of 1983, drove attendees in a Montgomery County School bus from Fox Chapel Shopping Center to Mr. Gibbs’s nearby home in Germantown. The celebration began at 1:00 pm in the front yard of Mr. Gibbs’ home. Attendees held up posters, sang Christmas carols and the song “The Impossible Dream” (brief video below), and delivered a few short speeches to honor their former teacher.
Mr. Gibbs, who was choked up by the surprise celebration, thanked his former students and said “I can’t believe so many people would show up. This is one of the most memorable occasions of my life.” He taught at Peary High School from the year the school opened in 1960 until the year it closed in 1984. The school was located on Arctic Ave in Aspen Hill (Rockville).
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