Jeannie Riah Wolff

Ms. Jeannie Riah Wolff, age 83, also known as Jeannie Gibford, originally of Ann Arbor, Michigan, with a last residence in Peyton, Colorado died on the evening of May 16th in the arms of her daughter.

Jeannie was born at the former Harper Hospital in Detroit, Michigan on March 14th, 1944. Jeannie was the daughter of famed labor negotiator, and former ADA of Detroit in the 1920’s, David A. Wolff II of Bryan, Ohio and Dorothy Virginia Walker of Bear Lake, Michigan. She had one sibling, a dear brother, David A. Wolff III, who passed away in September of last year.

The siblings grew up in Gross Pointe and Ann Arbor, Michigan. No matter what the years were to bring, the core bond they shared was never far from their minds or their hearts.

She attended Stephen’s Women’s College in St. Louis, Missouri, graduating with an associate’s degree in childhood education in 1964.

Jeannie took the next few years to travel to the west coast, working at various veterinary hospitals, in both Texas and California, and getting a taste of what life was like outside of Michigan and her parents’ home. In 1968 she landed in San Luis Obispo, California, set on continuing her schooling at Cal Poly.

When Jeannie went looking for the head of the animal husbandry department to challenge on the horse course, she found William ‘Bill’ Gibford. The student and professor eventually began to date, with quite a 21-year age difference. As they dated on and off, Jeannie’s father got sick, and she returned home to Michigan to be by his side.

In April of 1969, her father, who she just adored, passed away. Jeannie returned to Cal Poly and in November of that same year Jeannie and Bill Gibford married. In 1977, the couple joined finances and purchased and started a 600-acre horse and cattle ranch in Cayucos, California, while having and raising their three children. Bill continued to work at the college and was the famed rodeo coach at Cal Poly, bringing home many National Championships for the team. Jeannie saw to the day-to-day operations of the ranch and the raising of her children. She said she loved being pregnant and just loved everything about being a mom. And she was quite a protective one at that, over her children and her animals.

Anyone who knew Jeannie knew that she had an affinity for animals, particularly horses. To those aware of it, she discovered World Champion Quarter Horse Stallion and Hall of Fame Inductee, Zan Parr Bar. She purchased Zan from Bobbie Silva. Zan had a splayed-out right leg that looked to Jeannie that it could be corrected. Her husband Bill wanted to pass on Zan because of the leg, so Jeannie bought him herself and Bill purchased another. If he had been splayed out at the ankle, it could be trouble, but he was out of an old mare, and when the whole leg was involved, Jeannie had really good luck working with and correcting it, and she did. Jeannie worked with Zan every day and each day he got nicer and nicer. She really loved that horse. As a yearling she wanted to show Zan at halter. At 2 weeks from delivering her daughter, Jeannie had arranged for Dan Easton, a top horseman in her opinion, to show Zan and Jeannie packed up the two boys to be at the show. Low and behold her little colt won the Grand Championship and she was thrilled. After the horse began winning, Bill stepped back into the picture. He had Greg Whalen start showing Zan, and the two did very well. When Zan was coming a two-year-old, she began to start him. Jeannie had been planning to show him at Cow Palace, as she definitely wanted a buckle from him. Plans soon changed after her husband and a very unfriendly buyer, decided they knew best regarding her horse. After the sale of Zan, the purchaser promised many things, free breeding’s to Cal Poly mares and to keep Jeannie from contesting the sale, she was promised his first buckle, which turned out to be at the famed Arizona Sun Circuit in 1977. Unfortunately, the lady who bought Zan never followed through on any of her promises, up to this very day, although she certainly could.

One of Jeannie’s other loves was reading. Throughout her lifetime, it is safe to say that she read at least 40,000 books. Her homes were always covered wall to wall with books of every genre and interest you could imagine. Her father insured a love of reading for Jeannie when setting up and account at a local bookstore. She could have any book in the entire store, she just had to finish one before getting the next, held on the honor system, she stuck to her word and off she went. The invention of the Kindle opened a whole new world, and she cherished each she had. Jeannie enjoyed many outdoor activities such as horseback riding, gardening and scuba diving, as well as indoor activities included knitting, sewing, beading, and always enjoyed learning something new.

In 1979, her husband Bill was diagnosed with brain cancer. It was an inoperable tumor, so Jeannie took care of him until the end, actually staying with him in his hospital room, into the next morning to say goodbye, so to this day, Bill’s date of death is a day later than what it should have been. After Bill sadly passed, Jeannie continued to run the 600-acre ranch and did quite well, topping cattle sales many times. She gave up living so far out and the ranch for her children’s schooling benefit, moving into a home in San Luis Obispo, California.

In 1984, Jeannie became a registered investment advisor, as well as a financial planner, starting her own company Foxwood Financial. She worked full time raised all three children into their 20’s.

In December of 1989, her mother Dorothy passed away in Ann Arbor, Michigan. At that time, she gave up being an investment advisor and financial planner for her love of teaching horseback riding, to both children and adults. She enjoyed working with all children and found a great reward in showing disabled children that they could do what everyone else could on the back of a horse, bringing many of them out of their shell. The children learned more than riding, they learned the parts of the horse, how to care for, saddle and bridle them, and they did.

She retired in 2002, moving with her daughter to Peyton, Colorado. In Colorado, she began dog agility, and even as Jeannie slowed, being so well trained, her dog Abby followed her finger and the two met at the end of the course. She really enjoyed it and did well with the Friendship Academy. She had a close-knit circle of friends, always there to celebrate the accomplishments and grieve the sorrows, notably her best friend Linda.

No matter what life threw at Jeannie, she was right there to take it on, and she did so with grace, and when necessary, a little grit. She didn’t have the easiest of lives, but she figured as long as she had her daughter by her side, she had already won, and her daughter shared the same sentiment.

Jeannie is proceeded in death by her parents, her husband Bill and her brother David A. Wolff III. She is survived by her daughter and caregiver, Jennifer Gibford, two estranged sons, Brett and Brad, two stepchildren, two grandchildren and two nephews.

Jeannie didn’t want a service; rather wanted your own journey with her to serve as one. She will be cremated at The Springs Funeral Services in Colorado Springs, and she will remain with her daughter.