NEW ORLEANS – The next chapter of Parry Nickerson’s life, opened with a phone call telling him that he was just drafted in the 6th round to the New York Jets.
“I just want to show those guys what I’m made of. No matter what round I got picked, it’s gonna happen,” he said.
It’s a crowning achievement in a long line of triumphs. Nickerson is a West Jeff alum who earned a scholarship to Tulane University.
He excelled on the football field, becoming one of the nation’s top college cornerbacks.
“That’s my baby and I’ll give it to him, he stuck with it,” Parry Nickerson Sr. said.
He also graduated from Tulane with a degree from the School of Professional Advancement.
On Saturday, it was a celebration, but over the last 30 years for the Nickerson family, it hasn’t always been happy. 34 years ago Parry’s mother, Tansy Nickerson, and her family suffered immense tragedy that no one should ever have to go through.
Parry is the nephew of Ramona Brown. His mother, Tansy, was a child when flames took her home and lives of her two brothers. For four days after the fire, investigators searched for any sign of her sister, but none was ever found.
The only thing left was clear a memory of Ramona leaving the fire scene with a mysterious couple.
After Eyewitness News told Ramona’s story last year, the New Orleans Police Department opened a missing persons case, in hope that she’s still alive, she can be reunited with her family.
“For the rest of our life, we’ll carry that memory with us,” Tansy Nickerson, said.
This weekend, brought the family another memory – a story that literally rose from the ashes, a story of triumph.
When Parry was drafted by the Jets, his mother Tansy was right by his side. She has been his biggest supporter since he played in park ball in Terrytown at the age of six.
For a family that has been through the lowest of lows, that day was their day in the sun.
“I was so excited and emotional. I was going to cry, but I was holding it in, but I was too excited. It was touching,” Tansy Nickerson said.
It’s a moment his family will have that will serve as inspiration to others whose families have had their own struggles.
“He could have been out there. He could have been in jail. He could have been doing a whole lot of stuff that a lot of this young kids do out in the streets,” Parry Nickerson Sr. said.
“You can call it the hood, you can call it what you want, but this is where we are. We got someone that is a living inspiration to a lot of these kids, you know. That’s all that counts to me," he said.
For a mother who has lost so much, it’s a moment nearly impossible to describe.
“It’s been a long road to come. It’s been a long dream,” Tansy Nickerson said.
“It means a lot to our family. We’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time,” she said.
“It meant a lot. She is a very supportive mom. She was always there at every game I had and to see all the hard work pay off, it’s a blessing,” Parry Nickerson said.
The Nickersons and Browns have pieces of their lives they may never gain clarity with even though they genuinely hope they will. But Parry’s journey to the NFL is a new chapter and they get to write it themselves.