Jean Schmidt Gilbert

Jean was born in 1946 to George and Margaret Schmidt. She grew up in Greece alongside her brothers, George and Richard, and her sister Margaret. She attended St. Charles Borromeo Elementary School and graduated from Nazareth High School in 1964, maintaining lifelong friendships with her beloved “Naz” girls. She later completed X-ray technician training at Rochester General Hospital, where she began her professional career.

In early 1966 she met the love of her life, Roger Gilbert, a young Kodak engineer. After a brief engagement, they married in October, beginning a loving and committed partnership that would welcome four children into their family and span sixty years.

Jean and Roger spent the early years raising their family on Rusty Lane, where they made many lasting friendships. There were neighborhood barbecues, homemade backyard ice skating rinks and guitar sing-alongs.

In 1976 Jean and her family moved to a bigger home on North Greece Road with a sprawling yard and lots of room for the kids to run and play. This move brought them closer to St. Lawrence Church and School, where they were active parishioners and the kids attended grammar school. Jean was involved in multiple committees at St. Lawrence throughout the years, she supported efforts to build a kindergarten classroom and eventually extended her volunteering to the diocesan level. She served in a leadership role with the Federation of Catholic School Parents and oversaw many fundraisers and advocacy efforts.

Jean and the kids delivered the Democrat & Chronicle every morning for many years, for a short while she was a school crossing guard, and then in 1988 she studied for and became a licensed real estate agent. Jean enjoyed a successful 25-year career as a realtor helping many families find homes.

In 1995 Jean and Roger built a beautiful cape on Macintosh Drive, where they would go on to celebrate holidays and milestones with their ever-growing family. Between family gatherings at their Macintosh Drive home, Jean continued her volunteerism and spent many hours collecting donations for the House of Mercy. Most of the time her garage was filled with bags of clothes and household items for Sr. Grace.

Jean’s favorite place in the world was the family cottage at Thousand Island Park on the St. Lawrence River. She and Roger purchased their own cottage in 1988, creating a gathering place for generations of family. Jean became affectionately known as “Cottage Grandma”, her most treasured role, and eagerly awaited cottage season and spending time with her fifteen grandchildren.

Summers were filled with trips to the Guzzle, boat rides, Fourth of July celebrations, golf cart rides, tea parties, and countless hours of laughter and “Porch talk”.

Jean was the family historian, the keeper of the Cottage Journals, the holiday menu planner, the big group photo organizer, and guardian of family traditions. As an avid knitter, she was rarely without a scarf, hat, or blanket in progress. Jean was also very proud of her Irish heritage, sharing many stories and traditions with her family.

Jean found happiness in the simple things in life, like a jelly donut from Jackson’s bakery, a Zweigle’s white hot cooked on the grill, and Abbott’s custard.

Her family will remember her whenever they hear an Irish tune, watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, see a violet, or whenever they make her famous pumpkin nut bread and her homemade eggnog. They will think of her when they gather for Thanksgiving and the Red Shed BBQ, and she will be smiling down through every glimmer of sunshine reflecting off the St. Lawrence River.

Carpe Diem

Jean is survived by her beloved husband of sixty years, Roger Gilbert; her four children, Katherine (Michael) Ilardi, James (Deborah) Gilbert, Jeffrey (Sarah) Gilbert, and John Gilbert; her fifteen cherished grandchildren: Mary, Joseph, Anne, and James Ilardi; Jessica and Emily Gilbert; Colleen (Curtis) Metcalfe and Meghan Brogan; John (Maria), Peter, Wesley, Elizabeth, Molly, Maeve, and Liam Gilbert; her brother George (Mary) Schmidt and her sister Margaret Cooke. She was predeceased by her daughter-in-law, Stacy Gilbert, her brother and sister-in-law, Richard and Gail Schmidt, and her brother-in-law, Joseph Cooke.

The Gilbert family extends its heartfelt gratitude to Jean’s devoted caregiver, Sandy, for her kindness and compassionate care, and to the dedicated staff of St. Camillus in Syracuse.

Jean’s life story will be shared during visitation on Friday, November 6th from 4-7 pm at the funeral home, 1411 Vintage Lane, 14626. Her Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Saturday, November 7th, 10 am at St. Lawrence Church, 1000 N. Greece Rd., 14626. Jean will be laid to rest in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to Most Holy Rosary Catholic School, 1031 Bellevue Avenue, Syracuse, NY, 13207.