Community Corner

Prime Poway Woman No. 23: Jacki Lake

Lake is involved in various Poway groups.

Jacki Lake said she’s blessed to call Poway home, but others may feel blessed she’s a neighbor.

Lake, who has lived in the city for 11 years, is a board member for the Poway High School Foundation, Poway High School PTSA and the Poway Chapter of National Charity League. She’s also involved in her children’s sports teams and, most recently, served on ’s Every 15 Minutes program committee.

“I like to volunteer my time where my kids are involved,” she said. “When I left my career to be a full-time mom all those years ago, I looked at volunteering as a full-time job. I truly feel an obligation to give my time to my kids’ schools and organizations where they are involved and help in any way I can. There is always something to do to make change for the good. It makes me want to do more.”

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For Lake, success comes with not taking no for an answer.

“To me, challenges and roadblocks are really just stepping stones in life,” said Lake, who looks to her mother as a role model. “They teach you to reach higher and if, by chance, you can’t get over them, it makes you stop and think and find a way around them.

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“My advice to other women is to find a role model who helps you become a better person—to be confident, strong and be willing to do whatever it takes to stand up for what you believe in. Find those qualities in the people you surround yourself with and you’ll never be sorry.”

What does Women’s History Month mean to you?

“Women make history because they do something extraordinary. We look to these extraordinary women as they pave the way for all of us. I heard Maya Angelou speak years ago and she said something that I will never forget: ‘Be someone.’ I have taken this to heart and have tried to live my life accordingly. Not all of us can be Amelia Earhart or Margaret Thatcher, but we can all be someone and make a difference. We can make a difference in our community, our church, our own family. Each and every day, we can make a difference in someone’s life. Try it, it feels good.”


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