DONALD GIBBON
Date of Birth: 1940
Place of Birth: Saint John, NB
Inducted: 2006 (Media Category)
Extremely articulate, very, very knowledgeable, unbiased and fair and dedicated to providing entertaining and intelligent hockey play-by-play, Don Gibbon established himself among the province’s top sports announcers, especially in Western Newfoundland.
His 34-year career within hockey broadcasting and reporting ranks as one of the best within Newfoundland and Labrador and has played a major role in the continuing promotion of sport, especially hockey. His coverage of every level of hockey from intermediate at the start to senior includes junior and high school much to the benefit of all four.
Don Gibbon opened his broadcasting career as a colour commentator and moved to play-by-play action drawing on a solid background of overall sports knowledge. At first he was the voice of the Stephenville Monarchs and then the Stephenville Jets. A great booster for both clubs, he earned a reputation with visiting teams for calling games in a fair manner.
His ability to easily communicate with players, coaches, managers and officials allowed him to provide listeners with plenty of facts, presented in an easy and relaxing manner highlighted by fast-moving accounts of action. Don Gibbon was simply an excellent hockey broadcaster.
And he always demonstrated a willingness to devote his talent and time to promoting Stephenville teams. In fact, he donated many, many hours to organizing and hosting radiothons that generated financial support for clubs from the Bay St. George area.
Recipient of Stephenville’s Citizen of the Year recognition, Don Gibbon has volunteered for many local worthwhile projects and has provided great coverage to baseball, softball, boxing, darts and broomball in addition to hockey.