Tom Kibbe
Thomas D. Kibbe of Enfield, N.H., a retired restaurateur who was active in acting circles, died Thursday, Jan. 9, at the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. He was 84 and the husband of Shirley Kibbe.
Mr. Kibbe was born Jan. 9, 1930, in Ilion, N.Y. a son of Drew and Alice Snyder Kibbe. He attended in the Leland-Powers School for Radio and Television Broadcasting in Boston, where he met classmate Shirley Ippolito, whom he later married. They soon worked together at WHWB in Rutland, Vt.
He later became a sales manage in business machines, holding positions in Michigan, Connecticut and New York City. In 1968, the family moved to Ridgefield, where they lived for 30 years.
Mr. Kibbe was active in the Southbury Playhouse and was a member and past president of the Ridgefield Workshop for Performing Arts, predecessor of the Ridgefield Theater Barn.
In the late 70s, he became a co-owner of Donovan’s, an Irish Pub in South Norwalk, where he worked for 17 years.
In retirement, the Kibbes settled in Enfield in 1998. He became a part-time goodwill ambassador at the Vermont Welcome Centers of Quechee and White River Junction.
The Kibbes also had a winter home in Saint Augustine, Fla.
“Tom’s loves included trains, watching airplanes at the airport, and lighthouses,” his family said. “He was a lifelong avid reader and cat-lover…He will be remembered most for his wonderful sense of humor, larger-than-life character, and his constant demonstrative love for his family and wide circle of friends.
Besides his wife of 60 years, he is survived by daughters Karen Kibbe of St. Augustine and Leanne DeCamp and her husband Jonathan of Fair Haven, N.J.; grandchildren David and Rebecca; a brother Edward Kibbe and his wife Joanne of The Villages, Fla.; and a sister, Leona Kibbe of Clearwater, Fla.
A memorial service is planned for Sunday, Jan. 19, at 2 p.m. at the Gathering Room of the LaSallette Shrine, Rte 4A, Enfield.
Condolences may be expressed at www.knightfuneralhomes.com.
Contributions in his memory may be made to The Upper Valley Humane Society, 300 Old Route 10, Enfield, NH 03748 (603-448-6888)