About the Lisa Jacobs Memorial Scholarship Fund
This year, we are celebrating and supporting The Lisa Jacobs Memorial Scholarship Fund, which was established in 2019. It was created on behalf of Lisa Jacobs, daughter of Maren Jacobs. Maren has been a UCP Board Member for nearly 50 years. Her daughter, Lisa, sadly passed away in 2019. Despite being a person of differing abilities, Lisa exemplified a "Life without Limits."
Lisa's new memorial fund establishes scholarships for high school seniors who demonstrate a commitment towards community service and the betterment of all people. UCP has a goal to raise $10,000 to apply towards this new Scholarship to honor Lisa's legacy. Lisa's fund will help recipients pay for books and college tuition.
A little about Lisa from her mom, Maren
Lisa lived her life in Lenox MA where she attended public school and made many friends. She was challenged by several congenital anomalies including cerebral palsy, glaucoma, a heart defect and developmental disabilities- conditions which caused my daughter to lose the ability to walk or speak and she lost vision in one eye. Lisa accepted these limitations and greeted every day with a smile and enthusiasm. Sadly, we lost Lisa on March 2, 2019.
Although her speech was limited, she developed her own technique to communicate using physical motion, facial expressions, and the few words and sounds in her repertoire. With 14 surgeries and daily physical therapy, she was able to maintain as much physical function as possible. Throughout all of this, Lisa still made many friends because she was always happy and everyone enjoyed her sense of humor.
Lisa was highly motivated and determined to live a "Life without Limits" despite these challenges. She aspired to always work hard and do her best. She had a spirit that she could accomplish anything she attempted to do and almost always did. These are the characteristics we would like to see in our Lisa Jacobs scholars.