Interview by Gainesville High School senior and Abernathy Cochran intern Emily Stewart
Meet Coach Charlemagne Gibbons! He is the Gainesville High School boys basketball coach. Coach Gibbons is married and the couple has two daughters.
We want to thank Coach Gibbons for spending time with us recently and telling us more about his life and love of Hall County.
Question: Please tell us a little bit about your family.
Answer: “My family is originally from Georgia. My sister and I are the only two born in Alabama, but the majority of our family is between Augusta and Atlanta. My wife is from Alabama and my daughters were born here in Georgia. We started our family out in Morgan County and ended up here in Gainesville.”
Q: Please tell us about your current career. What do you love most about what you do?
A: “I currently am the boys basketball coach at Gainesville High School. The reason I love the job so much is getting to see young people work hard to achieve their dreams and getting a chance to chase basketball to their future.”
Q: What are a couple of your favorite restaurants in our community?
A: “My absolute favorite restaurant right now is El Sombrero on Browns Bridge Road. That’s kind of my go to. I’m a big taco guy so there’s a few places that I like but that’s probably my number one. Secondly, is Green’s Grocery, I love their hamburgers, that’s kind of my lunch spot during the day.”
Q: How long have you lived or worked in our community?
A: “We moved here last year so this is going into our second full year living here. We came last July and we are really enjoying it so far.”
Q: Who is the most interesting person you have met here in our community?
A: “Probably Coach McConnell. He’s got all of the stories of things happening in Gainesville over the past 20 years or so. It’s been really interesting having a relationship with him and getting to go out with him a few times and kind of figure out the backdrop of Gainesville.”
Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would it be and why?
A: “The Bahamas because I like the beach and the clear water, so that’s probably one of my favorite spots. Sitting out in the sun and getting a little sun rays and some good freshwater.”
Q: What is one of your favorite movies? TV shows?
A: “One of my favorite TV shows is ‘Parking Wars.’ I get up in the morning sometimes and watch that just to see people living in the big city and all the stuff they go through with parking. It’s probably a little corny but I do enjoy watching all the stuff they go through.”
Q: What advice would you want to give or leave with people?
A: “Advice I would give to people is, a lot of times life is hard, going through it everyday, it’s not going to rain the whole time. Eventually you will have sunshine, so just keep pressing on.”
Q: What current or former local business makes you the most nostalgic about our community?
A: “Not necessarily a business but I’ve spent a lot of time here with everybody at school, and just the way the community has embraced Gainesville High School as a whole and all the schools. Feeling that love makes me feel like that’s probably the biggest push I’ve seen in the community…and the relationship with the high schools.”
Q: If you could choose anyone that is alive today and not a relative, with whom would you love to have lunch? Why? And where locally would you meet them for this lunch?
A: “I would want to have lunch with Michael Jordan. Obviously, I think he is probably the greatest player of all time. If we were gonna have lunch somewhere, I’m pretty basic, I like Texas Roadhouse. I’d love to just have a steak and chop it up with Michael Jordan.”
Q: What is your favorite thing or something unique about our community and secondly what is something you hope our community has or does in the future?
A: “The most unique thing is all the love the alumni has for everything that is Gainesville here. There’s so many alumni of Gainesville High School that are still in the community and still reach out and want this to be a great place. In my short time of being here, the amount of support that we’ve been able to receive since we have moved into town from alumni and people here in Gainesville is a great thing.”
Q: Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years?
A: “Hopefully still right here. Maybe a state championship or two, but just being here and enjoying our time here hopefully in the next 5-10 years we will still be right here.”
Q: What is something on your bucket list?
A: “Skydiving. I’m kind of afraid of heights and so I think if I had the chance to skydive I probably would just to kind of get over my fear of being that high in the sky.”
Q: What is something you have been proud to check off your bucket list?
A: “My daughters and what they’ve been able to accomplish in their careers, how hard that work. For my wife and I that’s probably a big thing on our bucket list is them achieving their goals.”
Q: What is your go to band when you can’t decide what to listen to?
A: “That probably changes a little bit. I’m kind of old school, but I do listen to a little bit of rap music so if I had to pick a go to I’d probably just go to Tupac. I know that’s a throwback but just the stories that he tells through their music would make my go to Tupac.”
Q: In hard times we can sometimes see and recognize greatness in those around us. Hard working. Positive attitudes. Helping on the front lines. Who is one of our local shining lights today?
A: “There’s a lot of people that’s out there, but with my relationship being here I think what Adam Lindsey is trying to do here at Gainesville through work and opening doors for a lot of different things around here. I’d say right now that’s a guy I look at as a shining light in our community, with what he’s trying to do here for our school and our athletic program.”
Q: What is the most beautiful place you have ever been?
A: “The Florida Keys. Like I said before, I like the beach but getting down there and just being right on the ocean, it’s a pretty place and really nice place to visit.”
Q: Favorite month? Favorite Holiday? And best single day on the calendar?
A: “My favorite month would be September because that’s my birthday month. For my favorite holiday I’d have to go with Thanksgiving because I really like to eat. All the variety of foods you have at Thanksgiving makes it one of my favorite holidays. For my favorite day of the year I’d have to go with Christmas, with Christ’s birth and everything that goes with it.”
Q: What would you rate a 10 out of 10?
A: “Chili Verde with a little bit of cheese dip and some fresh pico would be my 10/10 dish.”
Q: Who would you want to play you in a movie about your life?
A: “Maybe Will Smith. I’m not great with actors but I’ve always liked his acting and I grew up during the time of Fresh Prince of Bellaire, so I’d go with him.”
Q: What is one of two of your favorite smells?
A: “My number one would be barbecue on the grill. For my number two, I’d have to go with brownies in the oven, I love to come home to the smell of brownies.”
Q: Who inspires you to be better?
A: “My biggest role model is my dad, I’m fortunate that my father is still alive and in my life. I think that is the person who inspires me to be the best each and every day just from the lessons I’ve learned from him growing up in working hard, being disciplined and being a person of the community and a connector of people. He’s the biggest influence in my life and the person I try to model myself after more than anything.”
