At the 2026 CNY Jazz Black History Month Cabaret at Drumlins on Sunday,Feb. 22, a distinguished, groundbreaking individual will be honored with the annual Pioneer Public Service Award.
This year’s award recipient is Hope Knight, the East Harlem native who has been called New York State’s economic czar. As the president, CEO and commissioner of Empire State Development, Knight has nurtured some of the state’s most ambitious projects, most notably the historic $100 billion investment by Micron to build the country’s largest semiconductor manufacturing campus here in Central New York, expected to create nearly 50,000 jobs.
The musical celebration will be provided by the one-two punch of Jeff Kashiwa, world renowned saxophonist formerly of the Rippingtons, and Lori Willams, acclaimed international jazz vocalist, educator, songwriter, producer, actress and radio host…