Lisbeth Gamble Nichols

The daughter of Willard S. Gamble and Ann A. Babcock, Lisbeth was born on August 30, 1934 in Watertown, NY. A town near Lake Ontario that she loved and always remained connected to. Lisbeth was a deeply compassionate, intelligent, progressive, and open-minded person-qualities that surely helped guide her through the main milestones of her life. She left her childhood of sailing and exploring the shores of Lake Ontario behind in 1949 to attend the Ethel Walker boarding school. She flourished academically and went on to Wellesley College, where she majored in Art History, graduating in 1956. Shortly after college, Lisbeth married a Harvard man she had met while at Wellesley. They had three children, who Lisbeth had a deep and enduring devotion to throughout her life. The family moved to Crawfordsville, Indiana in 1968 and Lisbeth quickly found that she was underwhelmed by the quality of the grade school. As a sign of how completely she cared about her children specifically, and education in general, she decided the solution was to start her own school. She enlisted the help of students from the nearby college, local parents, and other members of the community to teach and lend support to the students. It was aptly named "The Community School" and incorporated elements from the Montessori philosophy. Enrollment continued to grow for a number of years with Lisbeth's energy and guidance. A move to Hilton Head Island in 1972 re-connected Lisbeth with her parents, who had recently retired there. It also reinforced her commitment to being an educator. She became the Dean of the Lower School at Sea Pines Academy, where she spent seven years shaping and influencing many young minds. She loved teaching but also realized that she had a truer calling. In 1980, Lisbeth moved her family back to the Boston area, settling in Belmont and, later, Waltham. She attended the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology where she received her PsyD in 1984. At the age of 50, Lisbeth began a completely new career as a psychotherapist, specializing in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, in the Boston area. Helping other people was her most profound passion and she continued to do that in her private practice until she retired at the age of 78. Lisbeth also loved birds, gardening, classical music, and lively conversations. Most of all, she loved her 3 children, Timothy F. Nichols, Kimberly N. Heiselman, Matthew J. Nichols, and her 4 grandchildren, Alexander Heiselman, Caroline Nichols, Jasper Nichols, and Joshua Nichols. They loved her back and she will never be far from their hearts.