William 'Terry' Tibbits

Terry was born in Hialeah, FL son of William Elphanso (Tim) Tibbits and Nellie Mae Albritton. He is survived by Susan, his loving wife of over 30 years; his daughters Sophia (James Holt) and Presence (David Mercier); three grandchildren Jessica, Kaya, and David; and, three great grandchildren. He is also survived by his brother Tim Elphanso Tibbits and sisters Sharon Grant, Valarie Zion, PollyAnna Applewhite and Lottie Tibbits. His sister, Nelda Deuerling pre-deceased him.

Terry was a 1966 graduate of Bay High School in Panama City, FL. After high school, he began his working career in the plumbing trade. In the early 1970’s he moved to the village of Cortez in Manatee County. He loved Manatee County and made it his home for his remaining years.

In 1980 he met his wife and soul mate, Susan. Soon after, he made a career change to work in the boating services industry. He worked at Galati Marine on Anna Maria Island for many years and continued his boating career with Snead Island BoatWorks, Inc on Snead Island, retiring at the end of 2013.

Terry loved life and adventure! He was also an animal lover with a special place in his heart for our cats and all the furred and feathered friends in our yard and neighborhood. Terry enjoyed music, sailing, Geocaching, and traveling. Over the years, Terry was fortunate enough to be able to see most of the musicians he enjoyed in live concerts. He loved boats and nautical history and many of our travels incorporated both. He especially enjoyed a visit to the Portsmouth Dockyards in England which included a tour of Lord Nelson’s flagship, HMS Victory; and a tour of the USS Constitution while visiting Boston, MA. One of our last vacations was a trip to Alaska which Terry loved! A highlight of this trip was a helicopter ride which included landing on a glacier and drinking glacier water. Terry loved sailing aboard our 34’ Hook Kelly custom sailboat, Grand Illusion. He crewed on the boat for many years before we bought it; and he then enjoyed much success racing the boat in Tampa Bay area regattas. Later after parting with Grand Illusion, he acquired a 27’ TMI, Spars & Stripes which he enjoyed sailing on the Manatee River and in a few select races. Geocaching brought us to many “off the beaten” path places and gave us new challenges. We lit up our map with 25 states and Canada; we also completed the Florida Challenge which required finding a Geocache in each of Florida’s 67 counties! Terry was a member of the Bradenton Yacht Club and served on the Entertainment Committee for several years.

Through all of these life adventures, Terry met many people and made many special friends all along the way. All who knew him will miss his twinkling eyes, mischievous smile, infectious laugh and wonderful sense of humor!

Terry loved our home on Snead Island and the fact that Emerson Point Preserve is our backyard. It is only fitting that a celebration of his life will be held at Emerson Point Preserve (Main Pavilion) on June 22, 2019 from 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm. Come for a while and share a memory.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Terry’s memory can be made to the Manatee River Pram Fleet 4307 Snead Island Road, Palmetto, FL 34221 or to the Bishop Animal Shelter SPCA 5718 21st Ave W Bradenton, FL 34209