Cookeville Radio Legend Philip Gibbons Shares His Journey to Heart Health
Philip Gibbons — the legendary voice of Cookeville’s The Country Giant 94.7 FM for 50 years and a longtime public address announcer for Tennessee Tech athletics — never imagined he would face a serious heart condition.

With no family history of heart disease and a healthy lifestyle, Gibbons thought he had nothing to worry about.

“I exercise regularly,” he said. “I’ve been walking a couple of miles a day for 30-plus years and working out regularly at the YMCA.”

Despite his active lifestyle and feeling great, a routine blood test showed slightly elevated cholesterol levels. This led Gibbons’ primary care physician to suggest a coronary calcium screening.

The results were alarming: Gibbons’ score was 1,100, indicating significant plaque buildup in his arteries. The next step was a heart catheterization, which revealed that Gibbons had four heart vessel blockages, each 75% or more.

“That’s when the news was broken to me that I was facing quadruple bypass surgery,” said Gibbons. “It was a huge shock to me because my parents are well into their 90s. I had absolutely no symptoms, and I felt great.”

Gibbons placed his trust in CRMC for his surgery and treatment.

“I never thought about going anywhere else for surgery or treatment,” he said. “Cookeville Regional Medical Center’s reputation is incredible, and the care that I received before and after surgery was second to none.”

The day after surgery, Gibbons was already up and walking, and soon after, he started cardiac rehabilitation at Cookeville Regional’s Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Center.

“It was a great experience,” said Gibbons. “They were extremely helpful in helping me get back to exercising, and it was very educational, as well.”

Thanks to CRMC, Gibbons is now back to enjoying life with his family, feeling healthier and more at ease.

“I am most thankful for the coronary calcium test that my primary care physician had me do,” said Gibbons. “Otherwise, who knows what might have happened? I could have had a heart episode down the road, so I’m very grateful for that test.”

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