Tibbs trades nomadic lifestyle for gifted teaching
Wendy Tibbs works at West Madison Elementary School as a gifted specialist. CONTRIBUTED/Greg Machen
MADISON – Twenty-three years ago, Wendy and Joey Tibbs moved to Madison with his job. She was expecting their third son.
Eldest son Geof of Winston-Salem, N.C. “is a cranial remolder. He makes baby helmets; how cool is that?” Wendy said. Sons Doug and Connor of Madison are both “in the burgeoning beer industry — Doug at Straight to Ale and Connor at Blue Pants Brewery.”
Wendy’s mother and sister also live in Madison, “which adds extra richness to our lives. I have to mention my 17-year-old dog, Maggie. Her greatest joy in life is to lay on the front lawn and snooze or bark, alternately.”
Wendy was born in Metairie, La. but then moved to West Memphis, Ark. and Dyersburg, Tenn. Being “somewhat of a nomad,” Wendy adapted easily to husband Joey’s retail career in Houston, Texas; Shreveport, La.; Jonesboro and Fayetteville, Ark.; Springfield, Mo. and Louisville, Ky.
They had moved 17 times (including cross-town) in 14 years before settling in Alabama.
“I love being in one place for such a long time … most of the town is filled with other ‘transplants’ like me from all over the world,” Wendy said. These perspectives allow “change, quirkiness and differences.”
“I especially treasure seeing wrinkles forming on my friends’ faces, seeing my friends become grandparents and knowing, in our eyes, we still see each other as 20-somethings,” Wendy said.
At Arkansas State University, she earned a bachelor’s degree while working as a secretary/copywriter in public relations. Her job now, gifted specialist at West Madison Elementary School, mixes “PR and teaching. I ‘pitch’ topics to my kids … and strategically ‘sell’ my entire program to parents, the school system and state legislature.”
She earned a master’s degree from the University of Alabama in gifted education while working as gifted teacher at three Madison schools.
Her first teaching assignment was outside Springfield with 35 first-graders in one classroom. She also taught outside Memphis and Louisville.
Wendy serves on gifted education boards, co-edits West Madison’s yearbook, coaches Destination Imagination and at Camp Invention and is studying for National Teaching Board certification.
“I rarely listen to anything except Christian radio. And show tunes. I love musicals and someday hope to ‘Wicked’ and ‘Phantom of the Opera,'” she said.
