Jacquie’s Awards and Articles

On June 16, 2005, Jacquie Sears was awarded Mother of the Year 2005 by the National MS Society, Central New England Chapter. This article appeared in the Daily Hampshire Gazette www.gazettenet.com on Tuesday, July 19, 2005.

Living with MS, How Jacqueline Sears of Southampton puts her good days to good use
By GILLIAN GILLERS

          The symptoms started in 1999. Jacqueline Sears of Southampton was exhausted, her legs hurt and her hands felt funny. Then her eye starting blurring and she was too tired to work. She went to her doctor, who told her to quit smoking.
Several months and two medical experts later _ in the spring of 2000 _ Sears was told she had multiple sclerosis.
"I felt scared and exhausted," Sears wrote later, in a series of reflections on her diagnosis. "I kept thinking that the MS wasn't going away, like a cold does. I would have to deal with it for the rest of my life." Thirty-seven years old at the time of her diagnosis, Sears thought that the disease would incapacitate her. She worried she'd need to use a wheelchair, like her cousin who also has MS.
But now, five years later, Sears is not only still walking, but painting, writing and volunteering as well. She has raised thousands of dollars to restore historical monuments in the Pioneer Valley, and she has invented an art therapy technique that she teaches at a Westfield gallery. She still attends meetings, takes vacations and drives her children _ Jenn, 14, Tommie, 10, and Michael, 8 _ to activities and appointments.
The Central New England Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society recently named her MS Mother of the Year.
Sears says she still suffers from fatigue, bodily pain and other symptoms, but she says she is generally happier than she was before the diagnosis.
"I laugh more. I sleep better," she said. "More than anything, I'm living my life with passion."
A disease with many sides
            Some 400,000 people in the United States have multiple sclerosis, according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's Web site. But a diagnosis is about all they have in common. MS, an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system, can manifest itself in vastly different ways, says Linda Guiod, vice president of the National MS Society's Central New England Chapter. Some with MS may be unable to walk or speak clearly, while others feel only occasional numbness or tingling, she says. Depending on what nerves are damaged, symptoms may include any combination of the following: extreme tiredness, vision problems, bladder and bowel trouble, loss of muscle coordination, cognitive difficulties and even paralysis. These symptoms may be permanent, or they may come and go.
"It's very individualized and very unpredictable," Guiod said. And, she adds, there is no cure for MS. Its cause is unknown, although genetics and environment are thought to play a role. Most people with MS have a normal life span, but they may struggle to live productively. Even in any one individual, the course of MS is almost impossible to foresee.
So, Jacqueline Sears takes life a day at a time. "I figure I'm still walking, talking," she said. "I feel fortunate that I'm OK right now."
Passionate distractions
            Sears says creating art has helped her keep this positive attitude. In the month after her diagnosis, she started scribbling pictures and writing poems to express her thoughts and fears. In one early drawing, a loopy figure with long, flailing legs is superimposed on a poem that reads, "I feel shattered ... I want to crawl in a hole to hide for a while." Sears says she was worried that she was "losing it" because she was scribbling, but a therapist told her she was doing art therapy.  She now has several notebooks filled with scribbles and poems, which she calls ScribThoughts and ScribPoems. Sears says drawing and writing have helped her fight depression, quit smoking and lose weight.
"Instead of holding a cigarette or holding a Snickers, I was holding a paintbrush or a pencil," she said.
After perfecting the technique, Sears taught it to others _ beginning with her own children. Tommie and Michael each have a "Calming Folder" full of ScribThoughts. Sears has also started offering workshops on ScribThoughts at Piece of My Art, a gallery in Westfield. She's given four workshops for children in the past two years, says Jennifer Dorgan, who co-owns the gallery.
"It's just a way to expose children to expressing themselves in a healthy way when they have feelings that they might not understand," said Dorgan.
            In the years after her diagnosis, Sears moved from drawing ScribThoughts to painting portraits and still lifes. Months of practice and individual lessons with local artists have improved her technique, she says. These days, she enjoys putting on an opera CD _ maybe Andrea Bocelli or Josh Groban _ and painting bright watercolors of flowers, fruit or butterflies. Sears has two watercolors for sale at Piece of My Art gallery, but she paints mostly for pleasure.
"What I realized is that I needed to find a distraction, a passionate distraction," Sears said. "I had to find things that I loved to do, that were good for me. And that was art."
On to public service
            Another "passionate distraction" for Sears is public service work. In late 2001, she was walking past the Westfield Athenaeum on Elm Street when she noticed that two historical monuments were in poor shape. Sears approached Ann Marie Heiser, Westfield's community services director, who told her that the city did not have money to preserve either the statue of Gen. William Shepard, a Revolutionary War hero, or the Soldier's Monument, dedicated to Civil War veterans. So Sears decided to raise the funds herself.
"I believe that these veterans deserve our respect and veneration," said Sears.
She began lobbying businesses and individuals for money _ she made calls, dropped off fliers, and sent letters using the Westfield Parks and Recreation Department's letterhead. She also sketched pictures of Gen. Shepard and sold them to Westfield residents for $20 through the Parks and Recreation Department.
Using an account opened by that department, Sears raised about $10,000 _ enough to hire a New York company to clean and restore the statues.
            In September of 2003, the city held a rededication ceremony in front of the monuments. Local officials spoke and a Westfield middle school student read an essay he had written about the statues. One of Sears' happiest memories, she says, is of the ride home from the ceremony, when her daughter Jenn, then 12, told her, "You did a good job and I'm proud of you."
The fire is lit
            After her success with Westfield, Sears launched campaigns to refurbish statues in Southampton and Holyoke. With help from local officials, she raised $12,000 for a Civil War monument in Southampton's Center Cemetery. The town has nearly finished restoring it, and a rededication ceremony will take place in September.
In Holyoke, Sears has helped raise $7,600 thus far to restore a statue of Lady Liberty in the city's Veterans Park.
"[Jacquie] has so much energy and enthusiasm," said Judith Miller Conlin, chair of the Southampton Cemetery Commission, who is working with Sears on the restoration project. "She's just a breath of fresh air. She just has a way of talking to larger donors _ and smaller donors, too _ and making them feel happy about donating."
            Having caught "the public service bug," Sears says, she looked for other ways to serve her community. A liquor store on County Road in Southampton near her home had been robbed twice in recent years, and Sears worried that the neighborhood was unsafe. She assumed _ and Southampton Police Chief David Silvernail confirmed _ that the town could not afford to erect streetlights. So in the summer of 2004, Sears organized five of her immediate neighbors to buy and install lamps themselves. Now every other house on Couture Road, where Sears lives, has a tall, bright light in the front yard.
"You can walk around at night and you don't feel scared," Sears said.
'An amazing woman'
            Sears' achievements have inspired friends, family members, co-workers, even public figures. Brenda Couture of Southampton, who is acquainted with Sears from town hall meetings, says she is honored to know her.
"I think she's an amazing woman," Couture said. "She's always bright, always cheerful, always smiling. She's just a go-getter."
Sears' daughter, Jenn, says she has learned from her mother that people with chronic illnesses can still get through daily life, if they stay positive. Jenn has had to do more household chores since her mother got sick, but she has adjusted quickly, she says.
"It makes me really proud of my mom _ how she thinks of other people instead of herself," Jenn said. "She's like a really strong person."
News of Sears' efforts spread beyond her community this year. In November 2004, Steve Sookikian, director of media relations at the National MS Society's Central New England Chapter, received an email from Sears, in which she told her story and thanked him for the society's Web site. After Sookikian did some follow-up research, the chapter named Sears MS Mother of the Year, a title awarded annually to devoted mothers with MS who contribute to the quality of life in their communities. The chapter also gives an MS Father of the Year award.
The chapter recently held an hour-long ceremony for Sears in Holyoke, where she received citations from local officials and a plaque from the society. Congratulatory letters from U.S. senators John Kerry and Edward Kennedy and Massachusetts first lady Ann Romney were read aloud. Sookikian said Sears was a "perfect candidate" for the award.
"She really reached out and made an impact across the broader community," he said. "She's picked up the ball where resources of the local government are not sufficient."
The Zone' still lurks
            Staying active and involved has boosted Sears' spirits, her husband, Tommie, says. But the disease still affects her. Dizziness and extreme fatigue might confine her to the sofa for days or weeks at a time. Sears calls these relapses "The Zone."
"My bad days are when I'm in The Zone and things are spinning and I have to stay put," Sears said. "You get so tired, you feel like you have jet lag." Sears also has bladder trouble, and it hurts to put pressure on her right leg. She says she is thankful for cruise control. Walking more than a few blocks is hard for her, so she exercises by riding her bicycle and swimming in her backyard pool. She owns a wheelchair, but she has only used it once, to visit Gettysburg, Pa., with her husband.
Sears takes painkillers when her symptoms worsen, and she gives herself a shot of the interferon Betaseron every other day to slow the course of the disease. She gets an MRI every two years to check for further damage to the tissue surrounding her nerve fibers. After this month's MRI showed no progression of the disease, Sears said she felt relieved and excited. She does not know what to expect from MS in the coming years, but she has a lot on her to-do list. She recently began writing a monthly newspaper column on the history of Holyoke. She hopes to publish a book about how ScribThoughts helped her deal with MS. And she wants to raise money to restore monuments in other cities.
            "That's the hardest part about this disease _ not really knowing how it's going, what it's doing and how you're going to feel. But you just gotta do it anyways," Sears said. "I'm just going to plan things anyway."

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This article appeared in The Republican on July 3, 2005.

Mom tackles projects while living with MS

By David Bergengren

          Southampton-Jacqueline M. Sears has learned to make every day count. Diagnosed five years ago with multiple sclerosis, a chronic neurological disease that affects the central nervous system, the 42-year-old mother of three, has found not only a way to cope but also a renewed purpose in life. She recently received an outpouring of accolades as she was named MS Mother of the Year by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Central New England Chapter, which represent Massachusetts ad New Hampshire.

            The honor recognized her work on the restoration of area historic monuments and her work with children, in addition to her commitment to her own family.

“She’s really had quite an impact on her community,” said Steven R. Sookikian, director of communications for the society’s Central New England Chapter, based in Waltham.

            “She’s a wonderful individual,” said Selectman Edward D. Batchelder, who, along with Selectman Douglas F. Blanchard, attended a June 16 ceremony at the Delaney House to present her a proclamation from the board. “She’s a very, very strong, vibrant individual.” Batchelder, who met Sears about three years ago through their children’s suburban football league games, said, “I never knew that she had MS. I never knew she had this in her life, because she was always smiling, upbeat, and (positive).”

            Sears also received letters of congratulations from U.S. Sens. Edward M. Kennedy and John F. Kerry, D-Mass., a proclamation from the U. S. House of Representatives from U.S. Rep. John W. Olver, D-Amherst, and similar ones from the state Legislature via state Rep. Peter Kocot, D-Northampton, and state Sen. Michael R. Knapik, R-Westfield.

            She was also honored by Westfield Mayor Richard K. Sullivan, Holyoke Mayor Michael Sullivan and Governor’s Councilor Peter Vickery. A personal letter from Gov. Mitt Romney’s wife, Ann Romney, who has also been diagnosed with MS, was particularly touching, Sears said.

          On June 16, 2005, I was awarded Mother of the Year 2005 by the National MS Society, Central New England Chapter.

Here is my acceptance speech for this honorable award:

I accept the MS Mother of the year award in honor of my own mother, who is here today with my dear father. My mother taught me every thing she knows about being a parent. I distinctly remember when I went into labor with my oldest child, Jennifer. She said, “Be brave.” I have been brave and weary at the same time. Being a parent is the toughest job I’ve ever had, but the most fulfilling. The rewards out weigh all the sleepless nights, bedlam and endless piles of laundry. While my children are still very young 8, 10, and 14, they are all special in their own way. My youngest, Michael, cleverly assist his father around the house with his own toolbox. My son, Tommie, consistently scores high marks for his superior reading abilities and my daughter, Jennifer, gets good grades, runs track and helps me around the house.  Thankfully, they are all good kids. Between ferrying them to sporting events, running a household and volunteering, you never know what your day will entail.  My father once told me “that a good parent is a flexible parent.”  Actually he’s my Step-father, but has always been kind and generous, treating me like one of his own.

I invited all of you here today to thank you, because each and every one of you has supported me in your own way. It could have been with a simple word of encouragement, an inspiring deed or a word of comfort. Whether you realize it or not, you gave me a reason with purpose. A reason to get up: a reason to move forward; even when my body has resisted. You helped me find a passionate distraction, such as raising funds for monuments, creating art or writing. With your help, I accomplished what I set out to do. While I have so much to learn and many things to achieve, I know with your support, I will succeed. I would also like to thank the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for this lovely gathering, for all the wonderful things they do for its members and for recognizing that being a good mother is important. I only wish I could award every mother who battles this disease, for they are all heroes. Thank you.

     I believe my degree at Holyoke Community College in Arts and Science and my Dale Carnegie Sales Course certificate helped me accomplish many things in my life. Here are my awards for being named MS Mother of the year 2005 by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Central New England Chapter, www.msnewengland.org on June 16, 2005 and from the city of Westfield and town of Southampton for raising funds to preserve their beautiful monuments.  I am very thankful and appreciate each and every one of them.

I was able to accomplish these deeds due to my loving family, supportive friends and associates.  Most importantly, I have learned that there is great joy in giving rather than receiving.

Here is a nice letter from First Lady Ann Romney. Isn’t she a sweetheart!

I also received the following awards: