Mother of Miami Gardens rests in peace

Tributes for trailblazing public servant Shirley Gibson

By Johania Charles Miami Times Staff Writer

On October 24, 2023

“Did you ever know that you’re my hero?” were the lyrics that echoed inside a Miami Gardens church Monday evening during a viewing for the city’s founding mayor, Shirley Gibson.

Icon, matriarch, maverick, pioneer, public servant and modern-day Harriet Tubman were just some of the words used to describe Gibson, who died last week at the age of 79, shared during touching remarks made by friends, old classmates and former colleagues.

“This is a sad day for our city,” said current Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris, who attended Gibson’s memorial service with his fellow councilmembers. “We lost our matriarch. On her shoulders, we stand – all of us. Words aren’t enough to express the hurt that we feel but words can say we love Shirley. Thank God we were able to give her flowers while she lived.”

In a final act to honor Gibson’s contributions to the city, Harris and other Miami Gardens city officials presented a proclamation in her honor. 

The cities of North Miami, North Miami Beach and Opa-locka, as well as the Florida House of Representatives, Florida Senate, Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners, Miami-Dade County Public Schools board members and the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce, among others, also presented respective proclamations and resolutions. 

“Mayor Gibson was a dear friend, someone I admired, someone who mentored me. Someone I loved deeply,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “She’s a role model … she’s a maverick. Let us never forget the great lessons she’s taught all of us as to how to live a life of faith … a life of action, a life of justice.” 

Gibson served as the city’s mayor from 2003 to 2012. She is credited for creating the city’s popular Jazz In The Gardens music festival, which officials say draws thousands of people each year and brings millions of dollars in direct spending to the city. 

Before Gibson became mayor, the devoted mother, grandmother and New Way Fellowship Baptist Church Sunday school teacher once served as a Miami-Dade police officer. 

“I didn’t know her personally … but I did know of her and knew of her accomplishments,” said Stephanie Daniels, interim director of the Miami-Dade Police Department. “I’ve heard that she was an awesome detective. She gave 100% when she worked. As you can see, when she left law enforcement, she continued doing things within the community. [We’ve] come to give honor to a person who devoted her life to the community. There’s no way I would’ve missed this. I had to come.” 

Other law enforcement officials, such as Miami Gardens Police Department Chief Delma Noel-Pratt, also paid their respects. 

A life of love & service 

Gibson is remembered by loved ones as someone who enjoyed dancing and gardening, but most of all, she loved her family. 

“Most people only have a handful of best friends. Well, in my handful, there’s one person I love the most, which is my grandma,” said Morgan McMillan, Gibson’s granddaughter, at the funeral service. ”My grandma is my world. We did everything together. Movies, dinners, plays. She’s seen me at my worst and she stayed strong. So, we’ve seen her at her worst and we stayed strong.” 

Gibson not only led the city of Miami Gardens but also the Dade County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority as its chapter president. 

In scripture and song, the sorority performed a rite of passage for the late mayor during Monday’s viewing. 

“She was a quiet but very strong force,” said Catherine McPhee, a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. “When you would see her, you would always have a conversation, greeted with a hug and a kiss. [But] know you were going to talk for a while. To me, those are some of the fondest memories because I wasn’t going to see her without having a conversation.” 

“We were very blessed to have her be a strong, quiet spirit … She was a strong advocate for Miami Gardens and I love how dedicated she was to making it become a better city,” Charlenia Persons, another sorority sister, told The Miami Times. 

Nearly 30 years ago, Gibson led the charge to incorporate Miami Gardens following the construction of Hard Rock Stadium, formerly Joe Robbie Stadium. In previous interviews, she explained that the decision to incorporate the city was to give residents control over what happened in and to their respective neighborhoods. 

But the plan to incorporate the city was thwarted by a $100,000 campaign to ensure the 1995 ballot measure failed, as The Miami New Times reported. 

An unrelenting Gibson and the area leaders of the time refused to take no for an answer. Instead, they fought tirelessly for incorporation, which eventually happened in May 2003. 

“I remember when she was advocating for Miami Gardens to become a city. She was knocking on doors and going to meetings and asking people to support it,” said Joyce Postell, Gibson’s sorority sister. “She was always working for the people … We’ve never seen her mad or angry. She was always approachable.” 

Now five months after Miami Gardens – the largest predominantly Black municipality in Florida – celebrated its 20th anniversary, the city mourns the passing of one of its fiercest advocates and first mayor. 

Fighting for her community 

“What she did for Black Miami is like no other,” Reggie Leon, Miami Gardens District 2 councilperson and vice mayor, told The Miami Times about Gibson’s impact. “By creating a city, she created seven extra seats in politics that had not even existed … this literally opened the door for the next generation and continues to sprout leaders throughout Miami-Dade County. There’s a lot of things, just because of [her] vision, that just took off.” 

Leon also credited Gibson for influencing a generation of public servants to seek higher government office positions after serving on Miami Garden’s city council. He named Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners Chair Oliver Gilbert III, State Rep. Felicia Robinson, former Florida Senate Minority Leader Oscar Braynon and former State Rep. Sharon Pritchett as examples. 

“That legacy speaks for itself,” he said. 

Hans Ottinot, former interim city attorney for Miami Gardens, said Gibson often spoke about putting the story of Miami Gardens in a book to teach young people about its history and the fight that led to its creation. 

“If a book were written today, the stories would call Mayor Gibson a modern-day Harriet Tubman,” Ottinot told attendees at Gibson’s funeral Tuesday morning. “Mayor Gibson, like Harriet Tubman, took her people to the promised land. The stories describe Harriet Tubman as a freedom fighter, a leader, smart, tough, fearless, spiritual, determined … I believe this is an accurate description of Mayor Gibson. 

“She fought to create a government to enhance the quality of life. Mayor Gibson absolutely rejected the idea that Black people in Miami-Dade County could not self-govern and provide for themselves … opponents of the incorporation told Mayor Gibson that Miami Gardens was too poor to provide services to its residents; Mayor Gibson shouted back, ‘If you give us our freedom, we will not be poor anymore.’” 

Ottinot said Gibson’s impact on Miami Gardens was so great that he jokingly persuaded her to remain its mayor longer.

“I remember telling Mayor Gibson that she should argue against the nine-year term limits in the city charter … because the city would need her for more than nine years,” he said. “She told me she had no interest in being a career politician.” 

Rep. Dianne Hart, who traveled from Tampa to say goodbye to her longtime friend, said there was never any doubt Gibson would do great things: “There was a reason Shirley was voted the most likely to succeed in junior high, because she would go on to be a driving force in the city.”

This piece was republished from the Miami Times Online.