2021 Legacy Articles

Donald Shrimpton 2021 Legacy

1938-2020 Donald Shrimpton, a Niagara Falls New York native, was a musician, vocal music teacher and music director for over 50 years. He began playing piano at the age of four. While growing up in the fifties, he studied piano with Livingston Gearhart, Ned Rorem,...

Greg ‘Bubba’ Rinker 2021 Legacy

1972-2018 Greg Rinker; known as ‘Bubba’, was born in Lewiston New York and was a lifetime resident of Niagara County. For over 25 years, he was an extraordinary soundman on the Western New York music scene. From 1996 until his untimely passing in 2018, Bubba was the...

James ‘Pappy’ Martin 2021 Legacy

1933-2015 James, popularly known as Pappy, was a legendary jazz musician, bandleader and community organizer. Born in Ashville, North Carolina and raised in Niagara Falls New York, he began his love of music as a trumpet player, later changing to upright bass. As a...

William ‘Pete’ Hankinson 2021 Legacy

1941-2021 Pete, a native of North Tonawanda, New York had a wonderfully successful and varied musical career, in spite of being told at a very young age by one of his music teachers that he wouldn’t amount to anything. He picked up a guitar that was sitting on his...