Gilbert was born on January 13, 1937 to Frank and Edith (Smith) Madden, and he spent his first 41 years in his hometown of Merrill, Michigan. Gilbert married his soul mate, Yvonne Darland, on October 22, 1955 and they raised two daughters, Julie and Jill, and two sons, Michael and Marc. Gilbert put his unmatched people skills to great use in his sales career, and was known by coworkers and clients as the most dedicated, sincere, and gregarious salesperson around. In 1978, Gilbert moved his family to Colorado, where he would live for the remainder of his life.
Gilbert lived life to the fullest, and approached each day with passion and gratitude. He took great pride in his family and was dedicated to making family events fun, festive, and special. He was an incredibly generous patriarch; his children, grandkids, and great grandkids would often receive packages of perfectly selected gifts, for no occasion at all. He was genuinely curious about each of his family members’ lives, and was an engaged and sensitive listener.
Among his many passions, Gilbert loved to travel, especially to the beach. His body surfing, back floating, and seashell collecting skills were unrivaled, and he taught his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren all of his beach-going tricks. Gilbert made friends everywhere he went and held on to friends made around the world. He loved telling his family and friends all about the various adventures he and Yvonne had on their many trips together. He was well known and loved for sharing quite the array of fish tales, and could capture anyone’s attention with his amazingly entertaining storytelling.
Gilbert took great pride in his home. His house was always beautifully decorated for the season or holiday, and he created special outdoor hideaways for his great-grandchildren to explore and play. The creativity with which he approached designing his home was nothing short of inspiring. Gilbert was a woodworker, and taught his grandchildren and great-grandchildren all about woodworking in his garage workshop. He was an avid gardener, and his green thumb was such that any plant he cared for thrived despite the harsh Colorado conditions. He was the family’s go-to source for advice on all garden-related topics, and had creative solutions to just about any problem a frustrated Colorado gardener could have.
Gilbert was preceded in death by his father Frank, his mother Edith, and his grandson Griffin Madden. He is survived by his wife Yvonne, children Julie (Christopher) O’Toole, Michael (Johanna) Madden, Jill (Reginald) Dvorak, and Marc (D’Nette) Madden, 10 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, and sister Bonnie (Madden) McDonald.
Memorial donations may be made to the following organizations that Gilbert loved:
Merrill District Library at
PO Box 97
321 W. Saginaw St.
Merrill, MI 48637
Colorado Public Radio at CPR.org
Or mail to:
7409 S Alton Ct.
Centennial, CO 80112
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