Dr. Norman Vickers, Executive Director Emeritus of Jazz Pensacola, has been named a 2021 Jazz Hero by the Jazz Journalists Association.
The group’s Jazz Heroes are “advocates who have had significant impact in their local communities. The ‘Jazz Hero’ awards, made annually on the basis of nominations from community members, are presented by their local fans and friends in conjunction with the JJA’s annual Jazz Awards honoring significant achievements in jazz music and journalism.”
The citation for Vickers reads, in part, “Norman F. Vickers is a harmonica-playing physician who for the past 40 years has been the jazz ambassador and moving spirit behind Jazz Pensacola, the Gulf Coast music society meant to ‘provide a social forum for jazz performance, education and enjoyment for listeners and musicians.’ That has long been his personal goal, and he’s fulfilled it in many ways.”
In a thank-you message to members of the Jazz Pensacola board, Vickers said, “As the saying goes, ‘It takes a village to raise a child.’ And that’s the case here. All deserve accolades for persistent hard work to advance jazz both locally and nationally. My association with you and jazz friends both local and national has greatly enriched my life. Thanks for your enthusiastic efforts, friendship and just plain hard work to advance the music we all love.”