Ed Hickey, a pioneer in the Panama City Beach business community since the mid-20th century, believed in second chances. That's why the $260,000 endowment that bears his name will provide opportunities to students in need from the beaches area.

The gift from the Edward F. Hickey Jr. Memorial Trust will provide up to $10,000 in scholarships per year to deserving students, according to Jeff DiBenedictis, executor of the trust and a good friend of the late businessman. The endowed fund will be held in perpetuity to generate income for the purpose of the scholarship.

“We developed a very close personal relationship,” recalled DiBenedictis, division president for Cadence Bank, on his first encounter with Hickey nearly 30 years ago. “He was like a father to me; he treated me as a son. … Edward was an advocate for young people in the area who needed support and was a strong believer in second chances.”

The Edward F. Hickey Jr. Memorial Scholarship will serve as a lasting tribute to Hickey’s love and support of the Panama City Beach community. The scholarship will be reserved for students from the beaches area (specifically, ZIP codes 32407, 32408, 32411, 32413 and 32417) who need a second chance opportunity for a higher education. Applicants should have a minimum 3.0 GPA. For financial aid information, visit PC.FSU.edu/finances. 

Edward Francis Hickey Jr. died at age 94 on April 18, 2021, after a long struggle against cancer. Born in Norwalk, Conn., on April 15, 1927, he first came to Florida at age 13 when he enrolled in the Florida Military Academy, according to information provided by DiBenedictis. Hickey graduated at 17, and persuaded his parents, Ed Hickey Sr. and Lucille Handyside Hickey, to sign a waiver to allow him to enlist in the U.S. Army. After bootcamp at Fort Benning, Ga., he joined the 101st Airborne Division.

His exploits in World War II included action in Operation Market Garden, the Allied campaign in 1944 to seize a bridge over the Rhine River. Three months later, his battalion was besieged by Germans during the Battle of the Bulge in the Belgian Ardennes. Struck by shrapnel from an artillery shell, Hickey sustained a serious head injury and was unconscious for weeks. After being shipped home to the states, his recovery took eight months, and he was on the way to ship out for the planned invasion of Japan when the war ended on Sept. 2, 1945.

Hickey briefly worked for his father’s hat business in New York in 1946, but then moved back to Florida and managed The Tides Hotel and Bath Club in St. Petersburg. He opened several beach service businesses in locations across the state, as well as in California and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In 1952, he found a lifelong home in Panama City Beach and opened a concessions business by Long Beach Resort.

Ed’s Beach Service Inc. eventually provided equipment to hotels, resorts and other businesses along the Gulf shore and Front Beach Road. Hickey’s other business interests included a trampoline center, a paddle boat concession on the lake by Long Beach Plaza, and a rental car company.
 
Local businessman Jay Quave started out as a lifeguard working for Hickey, but in 1989 they became partners as the regional distributors for Panama Jack suntan products across the Gulf Coast. Hickey had long known company founder Jack Katz, and he suggested that Katz put the Panama Jack logo on T-shirts, towels, hats and other items, according to Quave, who bought out Hickey’s share in the business in 1996.
 
Hickey opened Ed’s Sheds in 1982, one of the oldest self-storage facilities in the city. He helped to develop the first City Hall building in Panama City Beach and was a supportive member of the Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce. In 1999, the Chamber awarded him its prestigious “Pioneer of the Year” award.

In the wake of Hickey's passing, many community leaders recalled how he guided them as they began their careers on the beach. He was described as a "self-made man" who mentored countless young people and taught them a strong work ethic. Sometimes gruff on the outside, he was also a gentle, caring man.

“He was a solid guy, tough, but he had the heart of a teddy bear,” DiBenedictis said. “So many would run into a crossroads in life, and he gave them a second chance.”

The trust has also donated funds to Backpacks Blessings Panama City Beach to feed homeless children, and the Bay County Public Library to support its GED program. For information on giving opportunities at FSU Panama City, call Katie May, Director of Development, at 850-770-2108 or email kmay@foundation.fsu.edu.