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SC African American History Calendar: May Honoree - Rose Gibbs

SC African American History Calendar: May Honoree - Rose Gibbs

Rose Delores Gibbs was born in 1946 in Moncks Corner, S.C., to Wash and Pauline Gibbs where she grew up with two brothers and three sisters. She attended high school in Camden, S.C. at Boylan Haven Mather Academy, and later graduated from Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn. (B.A.) and the Medical University of S.C. in Charleston (M.D.), where she was the first Black female graduate.

Dr. Gibbs was the first Black woman to serve as the chief medical officer in the Peace Corps where she was responsible for the health care of Peace Corps volunteers in 55 countries. She practiced medicine in a variety of African, Caribbean, and South Pacific countries while working for the Peace Corps. Thirty-five years ago, Dr. Gibbs returned to her hometown of Moncks Corner where she was committed to a communityfocused solo practice until her retirement in October 2022. It was her Peace Corps work that gave her the confidence and desire for a solo practice in a rural area.

Dr. Gibbs is well-known in her home community for providing gratis heath care to Latinos in surrounding communities for many years. Additionally, she has made medical mission trips to Roatan, Honduras, providing medical care to Afro and Latino Honduran citizens. She was awarded S.C. Rural Physician of the Year by the S.C. Office of Rural Health.

Because of Dr. Gibbs’ lifelong commitment to Moncks Corner, she has provided opportunities for rural children to learn tennis and acting. Her commitment to serving under-represented students led Dr. Gibbs to endow a scholarship at the Medical University of S.C. She is also developing a scholarship at Fisk University and creating a program to address violence perpetrated by youth.

Dr. Gibbs is currently attending the Cummins Memorial Theological Seminary in Summerville, S.C. for a Biblical Studies certificate. Her family was recognized as the “Black Family of the Year” in 1996. Her family includes her daughter Satirah Gibbs Jager, son-in-law Sherrod Jager, and granddaughters Jania, Jasmine, and Jaleyah.

 

Presented through a partnership between the South Carolina Department of Education and South Carolina ETV.  

View the series on KnowItAll.org here.  

Download the SC African American History Calendar here