A tribute to our best friend and brother, Garry Mac: 1955-2023

My friend, colleague, and brother as far as I was concerned, has passed away suddenly at the age of 67. Garry Mac and I were competitors, co-workers, co-conspirators, and quite possibly the biggest fans each other ever had. We could truly finish each other’s sentences, and often did.

As soon as I saw the name on the Caller ID Tuesday night, I knew what I was about to hear. “This can’t be good,” I told my wife. The last time I got a late-night call from Dr. Dan Bowden, a Chattanooga-based emergency physician, it was August of 2020, when he informed me that his cousin Garry, my lifelong radio friend had had a serious, life-threatening heart attack, his second one. Garry had a rough recovery, but bounced back a few months later, as he always did.

Since then, Garry moved to Florida, but still visited Chattanooga for a few days now and then to check on his now-deceased mother Betty, and to tackle a few freelance public relations projects, like the recently-approved free standing Parkridge Emergency Room, soon to open in Soddy-Daisy. Garry provided the advice and guidance on maneuvering through the governmental red tape, and helped unite the community toward a much needed common goal.

Garry and I had lunch last Wednesday at Zarzours Cafe, and continued our long standing tradition of gobbling up a meat and 3, and peach pie with ice cream, then spending the next hour telling jokes, spreading gossip, and analyzing politics.

We were always right, and after satisfactorily solving the world’s problems, we would hug in the parking lot, discuss his route home to the beach he loved, and remind each other that our friendship was a blessing. I think somewhere in my head, I would always think that due to his health issues, this could be the last time, but only briefly. Garry was always full of life, and his mom was a force of nature who lived well into her 90s.

Sadly, my gut feeling was right when I answered the phone Tuesday night, and Dr. Dan started to speak. “We’ve lost Garry,” he said. He explained that Garry had not responded to some phone calls and texts for a day or so, and that’s not like Garry. Family members had asked some contacts in Florida to check on him, and they soon received the sad news. Our world will never be the same.

I owe so much to Garry, and I reminded him often. When I was the morning DJ at WGOW (and later at KZ-106) Garry was hired as news director, so we saw each other every morning. Soon, he would hire a Pennsylvania girl named Cindy Hain, and when he introduced us, he recruited her to cheer for our softball team.

Later, when Garry teamed up with Dale Deason to host their incredible “Those Guys in the Morning” show on the AM station two doors down the hall from my FM show, they would nudge Cindy to hang out with me, which led to a date, which led to….well the past forty years. Garry and Dale made for a very effective, entertaining team in so many ways.

Garry’s career path took him in and out of radio for the past fifty years. Just last week, we reminisced about his early days at WEDG radio in Soddy-Daisy, where the Red Bank High student would spend his summer days and nights living in the station owner’s houseboat, waking up each morning to sign the station on the air.

Except for those mornings when he overslept, which led to another prized tradition. You see, we had Eastern time, Central time, and Garry Mac time. From my KZ control room window, I would barely be in my chair at 6 a.m., waving across the windows to Dale Deason in the WGOW room, confidently knowing that at approximately 6:05-ish, about the time the newsperson was handing off the show to the deejays, Garry’s car would enter the long driveway at a blazing speed, providing just enough time for his to hit the brakes, slam the door, and sprint into the building, almost like nothing happened. And our day could officially begin.

Garry’s full-time radio career pretty much ended in the late 1980s, when he joined Congresswoman Marilyn Lloyd’s staff, masterfully handling her communications. Marilyn was not a natural public speaker, and Garry knew how to make her feel comfortable, and loosen up a bit. She faced a few serious election challenges in those days, but Garry always helped put her over the top. She never lost an election.

There was one time when Garry failed to tell his boss about one important detail. Marilyn had been invited to speak at a Veteran’s Day event in Marion County, and I was the emcee. It was a cold day, and luckily one of the organizers had told me it was an outside event, and we (the speakers) would be seated on a truck bed. I still have the picture of us seated at the event, me in an overcoat and gloves, and poor Marilyn, somewhat under-dressed. She had not been informed it was to be outdoors. That look she gave Garry! We would laugh about that story too.

Near the end of Marilyn’s tenure, Garry toyed with the idea of running for Congress himself a time or two.  In retrospect, I wish he had. He would been an excellent representative. He would have endeared himself to everyone in DC (both parties), he would have utilized his charm, charisma, and gift of gab to compromise with others and make a real difference.  He would loved to hold regular town meetings, he would have stayed off social media, and he would not have made a spectacle of himself during State of the Union addresses.

He left the political arena to give TV news a whirl, anchoring at Channel 12 for a couple of years in the mid-1990s. He worked with Rebecca Williams, David Neal, Linda Edwards and Kevin Billingsley, and amassed a pretty good war chest of stories about life in TV news.

He dabbled a bit more in radio, and was a frequent fill-in on Talk Radio. He could be called upon on a minute’s notice, and fill a few hours without any show prep. He was a natural communicator. He kept up with the news, he was quick on his feet, and he loved people.

Put him on the radio with any combination of Kevin West, Jim Reynolds, or whoever, and you would have the best radio show in town without even trying hard.

 

During the past twenty years, he really found his footing in health care marketing, primarily at Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga, and Hospice of Chattanooga. He did some memorable commercials for both organizations, and led their successful marketing teams to new heights.

More recently, he did freelance marketing efforts primarily in the Chattanooga area and in Florida, but his work also took him all over the nation. When you’re good, you’re good, and word travels fast. He built up quite the clientele, and he always delivered. Garry was well-read, and common sense smart. He knew what the public liked, and he knew how to speak to them. He LISTENED.

On a personal level, I have lost a friend and brother who is irreplaceable. My wife loved him. My sons adored him. He made us all laugh.

In the early 1990s, he and I were among a group of old radio guys who began gathering for lunch occasionally. We called ourselves the VRW (Veterans of Radio Wars). Our little group of 4 to 6 people gradually grew to 12, to 25, to 50, 60 or more. Until the pandemic, we met regularly each December. Lately, we’ve been more cautious in our gatherings, but whenever we resume, it will not be the same. Garry was the straw who stirred the drink.

In the last few years, I have branched out into a few “side gigs” and Garry’s fingerprints are on every one of them. When I started writing books, Garry is the one who got me started going out to churches and clubs, doing programs and book signings. He’s the one who organized my first event, a book signing for “Chattanooga Radio and Television” at Northgate Mall, a fundraiser for Hospice of Chattanooga with Luther Masingill and “Miss Marcia” Kling. It led to a few hundred more, ongoing as recently as yesterday.

When I began pitching ideas for a weekend radio show, those lunches with Garry helped narrow it down to what it would become: a 7-year, 350 show success with a plan, an idea, a format, and a theme. It is sadly fitting that the show will end soon. He was a regular listener, and provided some great guidance and ideas, every step of the way. He was among the first advertisers for a little show that had more than a little trouble getting off the ground. I truly couldn’t have done it without him.

When I started writing blogs and newspaper columns, if there was one of which I was concerned about, or particularly proud of, I would always run it by Garry first. He was my unofficial, unpaid editor, advisor, and fixer. Every one of his suggestions and corrections was on point.

He was a terrific public speaker. On more than one occasion, if I had to suddenly bow out of an event for work or illness, I knew I could count on Garry to cover for me, and I would do the same for him.

Most recently, I was supposed to emcee a debate between two Tennessee US Senate candidates, former Gov. Phil Bredesen, and then US Rep. Marsha Blackburn. Just a day before, when I learned I would be unable to do it, I called Garry, who was ready and willing. (It would turn into a Bredesen-only event when Blackburn declined to attend). Garry did a great job, as he always did.

He loved radio, and he and I were among the first board members on the Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame. He believed in giving our local Chattanooga area broadcasters their due on a statewide level, and we had many fun trips to and from the annual induction ceremonies. If you wanted to attend a party, just ride somewhere with Garry. A party would soon begin.

Just last month, Garry was near his home in New Smyrna Beach, Florida enjoying one of his favorite activities, a rocket launch. He thought he heard a familiar voice, and realized it was another longtime radio buddy, Bob Boyer, with whom he had worked at WGOW and WDXB.  Bob and his wife Pat enjoyed their surprise encounter with a Chattanooga pal.

More glorious stories will emerge in the days and weeks to come. Garry’s beloved family, spread far and worldwide, will soon begin planning a celebration of a life like no other. Until then, those of us who loved him can take comfort in the memory of a one-of-a-kind, life changing friend. There was only one Garry Mac, and I was not finished with him yet.

An awful lot of people are feeling just like me. They too, have lost a best friend and a brother. That’s one big family, and Garry loved sitting with us all at the big table. The loud, laughing table.

Obituary for Garry Mac: Local Radio and TV personality Garry “Mac” McGowan had his final ‘sign-off’ on February 7th, 2023, a month before his 68th birthday by natural causes. However, the how and why are not nearly as important as how he lived – full of joy, gratefulness, and all kinds of crazy stories. He was most proud to be Dad to Kellan McGowan (Austin, TX), Hunter McGowan (Seoul, South Korea) and Brittany Kolodziej (Nashville, TN).
Garry was born March 4, 1955 at Erlanger hospital to the late Betty McGowan and was raised in Highland Park, a student of Hemlock Elementary. When he was 12, he, his Mom and Grandmother moved to Fairfax Heights, just off Access Road. It was then that Garry decided he would go to Hixson High School and be a Wildcat, but as his fate would have it he got on the wrong school bus and ended up at Red Bank Junior High where he remained and ultimately was a Red Bank High School Lion, Class of 1973.
Garry began his radio career in 1972 at WEDG in Soddy-Daisy while still attending Red Bank High. His next stop was at WDXB in Chattanooga, where he started as a “go-fer” for Chickamauga Charlie, Johnny Walker and other top deejays. Garry later got his own show at WDXB, and later became news director.
In 1980, he became news director at WGOW, and two years later joined Dale Deason as co-host of “Those Guys in the Morning,” which became well known for popular features like “Media Madness.” He finished up his fulltime radio career at WSGC in Ringgold, and was later a frequent fill-in host on Talk Radio in Chattanooga.
He worked as US Rep. Marilyn Lloyd’s communications director from 1987 to 1993, when he became the evening news anchor at WDEF-TV in Chattanooga. In 1995, he began a long run as marketing director at Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga, serving as the hospital’s commercial spokesperson. He was later named Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations at Hospice of Chattanooga.
He later moved to Florida, working in marketing for several medical care agencies including Cornerstone Hospice. In recent years, he operated his own marketing agency, handling projects like the new Parkridge free standing emergency room, now under construction in Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee.
Although Garry never adopted any form of social media, he grew his friends list every week. He never met a stranger and no matter where he was there was always a new friend nearby. Garry was a member of many groups and organizations over the years from the Rotary Club, to many TV and radio groups, to his favorite “Tuesday Taco Night” crew who gave him appropriate grief regularly, keeping him pretty close to humble.
Garry moved to New Smyrna Beach full time at the end of 2022, where he spent his final days just steps away from his favorite beach where he would feed “his” birds and watch the sunsets and shuttle launches.
An only child, Garry saw his mother, Betty McGowan, head to heaven ahead of him. His dad, Charles, went before that as did his great companion Max the dog.
Garry is survived by his three children, Kellan (Kristin) McGowan, Hunter McGowan, Brittany (Mike) Kolodziej and their children, Watson James (2 years) and Lucy Grace (1 year); aunt, Esther (Richard) Follis.
A visitation service will be held from 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM on Thursday, February 16th at Christ United Methodist Church, Chattanooga, TN. A funeral service will immediately follow at 2:00 PM.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that those who are able to make a donation to the American Heart Association in Garry’s name. Online condolences may be shared at ryanfuneralhome.net.
Arrangements are by Ryan Funeral Home & Crematory, Trenton, GA