Mary Margaret Giovagnoli

Mary Giovagnoli, 61, of Kansas City, Missouri—devoted daughter, sister, wife, and mother—passed away on June 12, 2025, under the care of NorthCare Hospice House. Per her wishes, Mary will be cremated, and a celebration of life will be planned for a later date. Arrangements are being made by the McGilley Antioch Chapel.

Mary Margaret Gibson was born March 16, 1964, at North Kansas City Hospital, the first child and only daughter of James Dale Gibson and Nancy Ann (Wallace) Gibson in Kansas City, MO, loving elder sister to John Wallace, Robert Dale, and Jason.

In her social studies class at Winnetonka High School, Mary met her soulmate and best friend, James (Jim) Patrick Giovagnoli. She got his attention by pushing his books off his desk before lunch, and even had to displace a boy with the last name Gipson to sit next to him in their alphabetical seating chart. Just two weeks apart in age—and even born in the same hospital—they didn’t know each other until high school. After several years of dating, these high school sweethearts were married on June 21st, 1986, entering into a union that would endure in love for nearly 39 years—Mary passed just over a week before their anniversary. As Mary’s health declined, Jim was with her every step of the way as a partner, an advocate, and a caregiver. Once Mary entered the hospice, Jim remained steadfast at her bedside for the entirety of her final days and hours.

Through her marriage, Mary was blessed to have in-laws that she loved and who loved her deeply in return, Joyce and Paul Giovagnoli.

Mary and Jim raised two sons, David James and Anthony Paul, born in 1988 and 1991, respectively. She knew early on that she wanted to be a stay-at-home mom and was deeply involved in their schooling. Once the boys were in middle school, Mary decided to go back to school to fulfill a longstanding dream of her own to become a teacher. While physical limitations kept her from becoming a full-time teacher, one of Mary’s proudest achievements was completing her B.S.E. in Education Studies from Park University in 2007. Not long after graduating, Mary entered renal failure and eventually received a life-saving kidney transplant. The donated kidney far outlasted expectations, and she remained forever grateful to the donor family for the extraordinary gift. She was a strong believer in organ donation and often encouraged others to consider registering as donors.

Throughout her life, Mary loved reading and watching mysteries such as Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Murder, She Wrote. She was a talented crocheter and enjoyed many other arts and crafts. Like her father, she had a keen interest in genealogy; one of her superpowers was being able to remember the age and trace the branches of the family tree of nearly any individual she was related to without thinking about it. To Mary, just talking on the phone with friends and loved ones was one of life’s greatest pleasures, and she spent many hours every week visiting with those whom she held most dear. A perfect evening for Mary was one spent at home with her husband and her boys, whom she told would always be her boys no matter how old they got or how far away they were.

Mary is survived by her husband, Jim, her sons, David (Henry) and Anthony, her mother, Nancy, her brothers John (Darrell) and Jason (Preston), her mother-in-law, Joyce, her stepmother, Sherry (Pettit) Gibson, stepsiblings Melissa Adams (Jerry), Stephani Coker (Rick), and John Sinclair (Lara), and many, many siblings-in-law, nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Mary was preceded in death by her beloved father, James, her brother, Robert, and her father-in-law, Paul.

The family would like to express their heartfelt thanks to the physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, techs, and other staff at Liberty Hospital and NorthCare Hospice House who provided Mary’s care in her final days.

The family will hold a private celebration of Mary’s life at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider a monetary donation to Donate Life Missouri.