The Jazz world has lost a lifelong contributor to the celebration and preservation of Jazz. Laurie Whitlock spent many long hours volunteering with the most popular Jazz festivals of the time: Sacramento Dixieland Jazz festival, Sacramento Jazz Jubilee, Los Angeles Classic Jazz festival. Her last role was as Festival Coordinator for the Sweet and Hot Music Festival in Los Angeles.
She was close to and friends with hundreds of jazz musicians and jazz groups. Here are a few of the bygone groups that she loved, Yankee Wailers, Hot Cotton Jazz Band, High Sierra Jazz Band, Jazzin Jacks from Sweden.
With her joy and enthusiasm, she encouraged many others to partake in all the wonderful jazz festivals she loved.
Having lived in Los Angeles for many years, she decided to move closer to her son and other family members in Sonora, CA. She passed away September 27, 2023, surrounded by her loved ones.
Dan Wilkinson, Banjoist and Guitarist of the Hot Cotton Jazz Band, said of Laurie, “In those wonderful years, during the 1980s and 1990s, when Traditional Jazz Festivals existed almost every weekend, no one was more instrumental to promote the enjoyment of the musicians and the fans than Laurie. Although she didn’t play an instrument, she was spiritually part of every band. Her sparkling personality, her great photographic skills, her enthusiasm, and her sense of humor enhanced us all!” – Cynthia Crosby
