Jackie Walker (she/her/hers), Executive Director
Jackie joined Lucy’s Love Bus in 2013 and served in programs and operations management roles for nearly nine years before stepping into the role of Executive Director in June 2022. While Jackie’s day-to-day tasks can vary widely, she’s always doing whatever it takes to ensure that Love Bus is exceeding the highest standards in all that it does. She is a creative thinker with a penchant for planning; she thinks of logical steps to attain big goals. With a lean staff, this has helped create and streamline systems to ensure that Lucy’s Love Bus is as efficient and effective in helping as many families as possible!
As a Northeastern University undergrad, Jackie met Beecher Grogan, Lucy’s Love Bus co-founder and Lucy’s mom, at a Boston nonprofit where Beecher was working full-time and Jackie held a co-op position. She was incredibly touched by the Love Bus mission: supporting families of children with cancer during and after treatment. She continued to volunteer with Love Bus throughout her college career, and as soon as she graduated, she was hired as the second employee at Love Bus!
Jackie holds a B.A. in Anthropology and International Affairs from Northeastern University and M.A. in Community Development Policy and Practice from the University of New Hampshire. She lives in a self-built tiny house on wheels with her husband, Wes, and their two rescue mutts, Barley and Moose. They love hiking, camping, and road tripping. Other than visiting National Parks, Jackie’s favorite place to visit is Maryland (where she’s from) so she can hang out with her best friend: her nephew, Max!
Q&A with Jackie:
Q: What’s your favorite integrative therapy to practice?
A: After suffering from a back injury, I have become a big fan of chiropractic care and acupuncture. I'm awestruck by the way a simple movement or pressure on a small point in your body can impact the entire nervous system-- everything is connected.
Q: What’s something people might not know about you?
A: I have never been stung by a bee, but I have been stung by jellyfish dozens of times– but I still love swimming in the ocean and the salty Chesapeake Bay!
