SPOKANE, Wash. – Spokane’s music community from all the way back to the 1970s, 80s and 90s, are rallying together to support local musician Jerry Hubert after his leg was suddenly amputated on July 1.
“It’s a life-changer and so shocking that it came on so quick, I had no idea,” Hubert said.
Hubert, 72, went from walking on two legs to navigating life in a wheelchair in a matter of days.
“I was shocked, absolutely shocked, thinking, ‘why, how can this be?’”
Just as July began, Hubert went to the hospital for a nagging pain in his foot, but as doctors took a look, they found the veins in his leg were clogged and his cells were dying. Not much later, the musician’s right leg was amputated and a whole new chapter began.
“I knew it had to happen and there’s nothing else you can do except smile about it so, it’s going to be okay,” Hubert said.
With an outlook like that and a loving community right there behind him, Hubert’s optimistic for the future. Largely, because his past is so special.
“It was my heart and soul,” Hubert said, choking up.
Looking back to 1980s and 90s, Hubert managed former Spokane nightclub, Gatsby’s, helping young talent find their way through the melody of the Lilac City.
“I was there for ten years,” Hubert said. “I watched those bands grow up from young boys, and the other bands expand… it was as close as anybody could get to the big time.”
It was a time when memory was almost the only thing you could hold onto, not many photos were taken; flicking through the archives, Hubert and his good friend from all those years ago, Richard Hein, shared a few.
“You always talk about the Seattle scene, but there was a Spokane scene too where a lot of good musicians came through and made some waves,” Hein said.
Before he was a teacher, Hein and his band got their start at Gatsby’s with Hubert’s help.
“When we finally got the headlining gig, I remember Jerry pulling me aside and he said, ‘go make me proud,’ and that’s always stuck with me all these years,” Hein said.
Before he managed Gatsby’s, Hubert was in a band of his own. Through decades of music, he created life-long friendships, and now those friends are helping him. Local musician Sammy Eubanks is holding a fundraiser benefit for Hubert on Sunday, Aug. 4, from six to nine p.m. at The Junkyard on Trent Avenue.
On the front of the poster, Eubanks called Hubert a legend.
“I’ve cried three times and still do because it’s just so touching, and I can’t imagine what people will say at this gathering,” Hubert said. “[They] actually called me a legend; I can’t believe it.”
Musicians and donations are needed. If you would like to attend the fundraiser and donate on Sunday, find Hubert’s sister, Jackie, with bright blue hair; she’s in charge of the donations.
