Donating for Dad and Doctors Who Gave Hope
Monday, July 8, 2024
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Bayhealth Foundation
Anthony Cibello was a vibrant and active 80 years young in 2013 when doctors in his home state of Pennsylvania told him his heart condition was inoperable. Unsatisfied with their opinion, Cibello’s daughters – one who is a nurse and the other, Michele Campbell, who is a manager in Bayhealth’s Medical Staff Services – found hope for their dad in two Bayhealth clinicians. Thanks in part to the care provided, Cibello lived another 10 years until his passing on April 19, 2024. For this additional time with her dad, Campbell made a financial contribution to the Bayhealth Foundation to support technological advances and healthcare services to help others.
Campbell described her father as someone who lived his life to the fullest each day – an avid golfer, hard worker, family man and life of the party kind of guy who could light up any room. But when breathing troubles landed him in the emergency room in 2013, it stopped him in his tracks. After a week of testing and news that he needed a surgery that he didn’t quality for, Cibello was sent home devastated.
Looking for a second opinion, Campbell called Bayhealth Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgical Associates, Dover to get an appointment with Daniel Marelli, MD. “Dr. Marelli saw my father within a few days,” said Campbell. “I’ll never forget it. It was the day after Christmas. After Dr. Marelli ran some tests, he met with my dad and told him he didn’t need heart surgery – he needed stents. He referred him to Dr. Gurmeet Singh and told him he’d be in good hands.”
From that point forward, Drs. Marelli and Singh served as Cibello’s doctors. “My father got great care at Bayhealth in every aspect from outpatient testing, to surgery, to being an inpatient. They all contributed to us having an additional 10 years together as a family,” said Campbell. “Dad had a great quality of life and enjoyed many more rounds of golf.”
When Cibello started having respiratory issues in 2015, Dr. Singh took the time to find him a pulmonologist and partnered with the doctor to manage Cibello’s care. “They were honest with my dad, and communicated with him in a way that made him comfortable.”
Campbell said her dad fully trusted Drs. Marelli and Singh because they spent time getting to know him on a personal level and they never rushed through appointments. “My dad drove three hours from Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania to Bayhealth in Dover because he felt safe. He continued to come back to Bayhealth after moving to North Carolina in 2018 because he found hope in the people who cared for him here.”
“When we receive a donation in honor of a loved one, it’s a privilege to hear the reasons behind the gift,” said Bayhealth Foundation President Lindsay Rhodenbaugh, DMin. “Mr. Cibello was clearly a great man who found hope in the caring and skilled hands of two exceptional doctors and a care team at Bayhealth. We are grateful to Mr. Cibello’s family for helping us continue to fulfill our mission of delivering exceptional care to our neighbors no matter how far they travel to find us.”
Reminiscing on her father’s life, Campbell said that Cibello enlisted in the Air Force at 17 and served his country for 27 years. He was a talented mechanic who worked on airplanes and served two tours in Vietnam. As a family, they traveled all over the world and had fun relocating from base to base. When Cibello retired from the Air Force he worked into his late 70s as a mechanic and then as an assistant funeral director. “He always told us, ‘Whatever you do enjoy it and give 150% to whatever you do’,” said Campbell. “He expected the same in return of the people who were caring for him. I believe Bayhealth gave him 150%.”
The Bayhealth Foundation extends a special thanks to Campbell and her two children Stephen and Sophie Campbell who also work at Bayhealth. Stephen is a certified nurse assistant in the Intensive Care Unit at the Kent Campus and is pursuing his nursing degree while Sophie is a registered nurse in the Emergency Department at the Kent Campus and is pursuing her nurse practitioner degree. “They were meant to work in health care. They are both so compassionate about what they do,” said Campbell who is proud of her children for displaying the work ethic her father instilled in their family.
To make a donation for an anniversary, birthday, special occasion, or to celebrate an individual’s life by continuing to do good in their name, contact the Bayhealth Foundation at Bayhealth.org/Foundation or 302-744-7015.
Campbell described her father as someone who lived his life to the fullest each day – an avid golfer, hard worker, family man and life of the party kind of guy who could light up any room. But when breathing troubles landed him in the emergency room in 2013, it stopped him in his tracks. After a week of testing and news that he needed a surgery that he didn’t quality for, Cibello was sent home devastated.
Looking for a second opinion, Campbell called Bayhealth Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgical Associates, Dover to get an appointment with Daniel Marelli, MD. “Dr. Marelli saw my father within a few days,” said Campbell. “I’ll never forget it. It was the day after Christmas. After Dr. Marelli ran some tests, he met with my dad and told him he didn’t need heart surgery – he needed stents. He referred him to Dr. Gurmeet Singh and told him he’d be in good hands.”
From that point forward, Drs. Marelli and Singh served as Cibello’s doctors. “My father got great care at Bayhealth in every aspect from outpatient testing, to surgery, to being an inpatient. They all contributed to us having an additional 10 years together as a family,” said Campbell. “Dad had a great quality of life and enjoyed many more rounds of golf.”
When Cibello started having respiratory issues in 2015, Dr. Singh took the time to find him a pulmonologist and partnered with the doctor to manage Cibello’s care. “They were honest with my dad, and communicated with him in a way that made him comfortable.”
Campbell said her dad fully trusted Drs. Marelli and Singh because they spent time getting to know him on a personal level and they never rushed through appointments. “My dad drove three hours from Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania to Bayhealth in Dover because he felt safe. He continued to come back to Bayhealth after moving to North Carolina in 2018 because he found hope in the people who cared for him here.”
“When we receive a donation in honor of a loved one, it’s a privilege to hear the reasons behind the gift,” said Bayhealth Foundation President Lindsay Rhodenbaugh, DMin. “Mr. Cibello was clearly a great man who found hope in the caring and skilled hands of two exceptional doctors and a care team at Bayhealth. We are grateful to Mr. Cibello’s family for helping us continue to fulfill our mission of delivering exceptional care to our neighbors no matter how far they travel to find us.”
Reminiscing on her father’s life, Campbell said that Cibello enlisted in the Air Force at 17 and served his country for 27 years. He was a talented mechanic who worked on airplanes and served two tours in Vietnam. As a family, they traveled all over the world and had fun relocating from base to base. When Cibello retired from the Air Force he worked into his late 70s as a mechanic and then as an assistant funeral director. “He always told us, ‘Whatever you do enjoy it and give 150% to whatever you do’,” said Campbell. “He expected the same in return of the people who were caring for him. I believe Bayhealth gave him 150%.”
The Bayhealth Foundation extends a special thanks to Campbell and her two children Stephen and Sophie Campbell who also work at Bayhealth. Stephen is a certified nurse assistant in the Intensive Care Unit at the Kent Campus and is pursuing his nursing degree while Sophie is a registered nurse in the Emergency Department at the Kent Campus and is pursuing her nurse practitioner degree. “They were meant to work in health care. They are both so compassionate about what they do,” said Campbell who is proud of her children for displaying the work ethic her father instilled in their family.
To make a donation for an anniversary, birthday, special occasion, or to celebrate an individual’s life by continuing to do good in their name, contact the Bayhealth Foundation at Bayhealth.org/Foundation or 302-744-7015.