Mary Gibson Bohn died June 25, 2024 at the age of 95. Born May 25, 1929 in Washington Parish, Louisiana. Mary Olga Cothern was the youngest child of Elijah and Alice Lillie (Jones) Cothern. She was preceded in death by her parents, her first husband, Nelson E. Gibson (1921-1982), her second husband, Donald B. Bohn (1924-2017), and by all of her seven siblings (Oweda Mae, Lavert, James, Elizabeth (‘Lib’ Harwell of Brookhaven), Opal Chambers, Dick, and Ray). She is survived by her four children, Nelson Jr., Melissa, Martha and Sarah, seven grandchildren, Georgia, Mary Rachael, Elizabeth, Sarah Camille, Caroline, Lilly and Austin, and eight great-grandchildren, Margaret, John, Lillian, Elijah, Turner, Nate, Hayes and Clark. Her remaining close relatives include her niece Alice Wygant and nephew Mac Chambers, and friends Rosanna Biebel, Michael Crawford, Bette and Charles Dixon, and Elizabeth Pfisterer.
Mary grew up in Bogalusa where she graduated from Bogalusa High School and then, from the Elizabeth Sullivan School of Nursing in 1950. She worked as a nurse at Baylor University Hospital and in New Orleans, Natchez, and Clinton, Louisiana. It was in Clinton that she met Nelson Gibson. Their courtship was ‘supervised’, she said, by her sister Opal’s child, Alice (age 3), and they married in 1951. Their marriage was one of steadfast love and mutual admiration. They lived first in New Orleans and then in Brookhaven at the ‘Humble Oil’ camp and in Natchez. In the late 1950s, they settled in Brookhaven where Mary lived until 2016, except for three years, 1969-72, when the family lived outside of Santa Fe, embracing that rich culture and landscape. In 1988, Mary married Donald B. Bohn. They split their time between Brookhaven and Donald’s home in New Orleans. They had many good years together and were adventuresome travelers, often visiting their children and grandchildren. Mary was assisted in her later years by her children and their spouses, first, in Mississippi, by Nelson and his wife Kathy, then in Maryland by Sarah and her husband Fred Nichols, and, finally, by Melissa and her husband John Lovett in Kentucky. They took very good care of her, and she found great joy in her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

There was something of the grand lady about Mary, but nothing in the least pretentious or arrogant, nor did she shy away from hard work or getting her hands dirty. Still, she rather presided over her home and her family, always in command. Like her sisters, she inherited the Cothern temper and could speak her mind. But her manner was always kind and generous, and she had caring spirit. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother. She was dedicated first and always to her family and worked to make their lives good. Still she was always willing to take on a project for others, to help someone out or take them in. Mary was a dedicated volunteer in several churches, libraries and garden clubs. She was a trusted and loyal friend who could see various sides of an issue and give good counsel. She had an artistic temperament. She loved nature and enjoyed working in her flower gardens and in the woods and lake on which she lived, preserving native flowers and trees and the land in its natural beauty. She could arrange flowers beautifully, and often did so for church functions or parties. She was a creative cook, accomplished in Southern, Creole, New Mexican, and French cuisine. Her good food was an everyday part of life. She was skilled at decorating houses and arranging furniture, which she did to great effect. Mary had a talent for embracing good and beautiful things and bringing them to those of us who had the good fortune to be touched by her. We her children are grateful to have had her for our mother. We will miss her dearly.
Services will be held at 11:00 on July 13th at the Third Avenue Baptist Church, 1726 South Third Street, Louisville Ky.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Mary’s name to Hosperus Health Louisville, KY, the Lincoln Lawrence Franklin Regional Library, or a charity of your choice.