Sports Annoucer gets close to dream

CHS's Terry Giffen may not have liked own voice, but audiences enjoy distinctive sound

By Laura Hachman / For The Clovis Independent Friday, May. 23, 2008

As a kid, Terry Giffen dreamed of becoming the San Francisco Giants stadium announcer.

Although he never made it to the Giants, Giffen's deep, soothing voice is well known in Clovis sport circles.

He has been the announcer for boys basketball at Clovis High School, as well as at many wrestling duals. This season he added baseball to his announcing repertoire.

Giffen, a native of Fresno, was a dreamer and a die-hard Cal fan all his life.

"I used to read coaching books," Giffen said. "My father took me to my first Cal game when I was just 5 years old."

Coming from a family with an intense football history, Giffen had always been into sports, and attended Cal for part of his college career. His grandfather played football for Cal and holds a Pac-10 record for most touchdowns in a game.

Giffen graduated from Fresno State in 1979 with a degree in social science. He started teaching at Hoover High School, where he also got his start in sports announcing with the help of his former mentor, Dale Hammel, a fellow teacher and announcer.

"I remember a conflict had come up and I was unable to announce a wrestling event," Hammel said. "They asked Giffen to do it, and he's been doing it ever since. He is truly knowledgeable and really cares about the kids."

Soon after, Giffen was announcing the Valley championship and other high school sporting events. His distinctive voice is what people notice.

"I am actually a shy and introverted guy," Giffen said.

"I always thought people were making fun of me when I spoke, and I hated to hear my own voice. But I think I'm pretty good at pronouncing names, and that is very important."

After 14 years at Hoover, Giffen decided it was time for a change.

He took a job at Clovis High School, continuing his announcing as he became a world geography teacher, as well as the boys water polo coach and assistant swim coach.

His voice is just as distinctive at practice as it is at the microphone.

"I know the kids can hear me because I am very loud and deep," Giffen said. "Even under the water."

Giffen loves being part of the action when he is holding the microphone.

He always does his homework to ensure that everything goes well throughout the game. Before every game, he types out a script with a crowd greeting and rosters that he uses as an aid.

"I have to track down the coach to find a roster," Giffen said. "But once I've seen a team, I'm really good at remembering names and faces. I can memorize the kids' numbers by the end of the first quarter. Pronouncing their names properly is very important."

Giffen met most of his closest friends through coaching and teaching at the high school level. Some he has known for 25 years.

"Terry truly cares about the kids," said Susie Kelpe, the girls swim coach at the high school. "He listens to other announcers and how they sound. He projects a sense of excitement into the game."

Today, Giffen is looking toward his future. With a recent purchase of a flashy Lotus, Giffen is putting himself into the spirit of amateur car racing.

"The racing has really re-energized me," Giffen said.

"I want to put more time into that. I want to see if I could be any good.

"It's a different competition," Giffen said. "I get to be the competitor, instead of the coach."

Friendly Faces is an occasional series about people who make Clovis a great place to live. To nominate someone to be profiled in this series, please e-mail Patti J. Lippert at plippert@clovisindepen- dent.com.