John F. Kennedy National Award

Mike Gorman grew up in Dorchester, Mass., and attended Boston State, now known as University of Massachusetts - Boston. A former aviator in the U.S. Navy for five years in the early 1970s, Mike Gorman began his broadcasting career at WNBH in New Bedford and WPRO radio in Providence. He served as sports director at WPRI-TV in Providence, as the voice of the University of Rhode Island Rams on WPRO and as television play-by-play man for the Providence College Friars. His vast resume as a play-by-play announcer includes being the primary announcer for ESPN’s Big Monday during the 1980’s. He has also called the NCAA basketball tournament on CBS, and the NBA Playoffs on TNT. He was a basketball play-by-play announcer for the 2016 Rio Olympics on NBC and previously used his expertise to serve as a tennis correspondent with NBC during the 1992 Olympics alongside veteran announcer Bud Collins and covered handball at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

Mike’s true passion and claim to broadcasting fame, has been his role as the Boston Celtics television play-by-player announcer since 1981, a steady and reliable voice documenting some of the most memorable moments of one of the greatest franchises in the history of sports, from the rivalry with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Bird and Magic battles in the 1980s to the team’s resurrection in the late-2000s and its dreamed-of championship runs of the last few years. He was also there for the lean times, such as the deaths of Len Bias in 1986 and Reggie Lewis in 1993. He currently holds the longest tenure as play-by-play voice for a Boston professional sports franchise. For almost 40 years, right beside him was Tommy Heinsohn, the Hall of Fame player and coach, making them TV’s longest running telecast duo. Heinsohn and Gorman could not have been more different as voices. Heinsohn, as the color commentator, was a gregarious personality known for his vociferous criticism of referees who dared to make calls against the Celtics. Mike Gorman was the more reserved of the duo, raising his voice only for big shots with his classic catchphrases “Takes it. Makes it!” or “Got it!”

To generations of Celtics fans, Mike Gorman is just as revered as many of the beloved Hall of Fame players who have taken to the parquet the floor in the Garden. In the long history of the Boston Celtics there have really only been two “voices” of the team, the legendary Johnny Most and the equally legendary Mike Gorman. The 2023-2024 NBA season will be his last after 43 years and Mike is being honored and celebrated throughout his farewell season by NBC Sports Boston, the Celtics, NBA teams and fans all over the country.

A five-time Emmy award winner, Gorman was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2004 and the National Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.

“Mike Gorman's professional accomplishments, which include his service to our country, exemplify the criteria the Committee seeks in honoring an American of Irish descent in the spirit of President Kennedy," said Hayley Dunn, Parade President. "He is a legend in the sports world, especially among the legion of Boston Celtics fans who for over 40 years have depended on his play-by-play voice. Mike's Irish wit have made him a cherished figure in the sportscasting world, and I'm thrilled we will be honoring him with this award in his farewell season with the Celtics. The Committee looks forward to hosting Mr. Gorman and his family Parade weekend.”

“It is an honor to be receiving the 2024 John F. Kennedy National Award from the St. Patrick’s Committee of Holyoke. Covering the Boston Celtics has been a privilege. It’s also been a lot of fun. I am extremely proud of my Irish-American heritage. My grandmother came here from Skibbereen where she met my grandfather who came from Dublin. They would be so proud to see me among the stellar list of previous award recipients. I look forward to a wonderful weekend.”

The list of past John F. Kennedy National Award honorees that Gorman referenced is a prestigious group, a veritable "Who’s Who" of Irish-Americans. Most recently, the honor went to Lenny Jacobson (2023), a Holyoke-born turned Hollywood television and film actor. Other past notables include owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers Arthur J. Rooney (1980), legendary actress Maureen O’Hara (1982), author Tom Clancy (1992), actor Robert L. Stack (1996), trailblazing NASA Astronaut Cady Coleman (2004), inspirational father-son duo “Team Hoyt” – Rick and Dick Hoyt (2014) and acclaimed Professional Boxer “Irish” Micky Ward (2016).

Celebrations recognizing Gorman are woven into the fabric of the Parade Weekend and include highlights such as an acknowledgment at the Holyoke St. Patrick’s Road Race and a featured position in the grand Holyoke St. Patrick’s Parade procession. Additionally, he will be honored at the JFK Award Dinner at Log Cabin on Saturday, March 16 beginning at 6:45pm. The public is invited to join the St. Patrick's Committee of Holyoke for a chance to hear Mike Gorman speak prior to the game clock running down on his farewell season with the Celtics. Tickets will be available online soon.