Our 2017 Honorees
(Click images to learn more)
Pat & Jim Jackson
Jim and Pat Jackson were deeply involved in the community from their arrival in 1963. Jim was the first president of the Cupertino Jaycees in 1964 where its door-to-door efforts led to passage of the first Cupertino Bond measure and subsequent building of first City Hall and purchase of first five park sites. He was chairman of Northwest YMCA in 1969, City Councilman during the years 1972-1980 and Mayor twice, served on initial boards of Cupertino Educational Endowment Foundation and Cupertino Library Foundation, was President of the Foothill-De Anza Foundation, and was founding chairman of Cupertino National Bank in 1985. He has been a pro-bono charitable giving consultant from 2003 to present.
Pat was a speech therapist, special education teacher and Assistant Superintendent at Whisman School district from 1972 until 1984. Thereafter, she was president of Quota club, Cupertino Women in business, Cupertino Chamber of Commerce and Cupertino Rotary Endowment Foundation. She served on other Community Boards including Northwest Y and West Valley Community and remained active in CREF until her passing.
Their support for WVCS goes all the way back to the early 1970’s when Jim helped get support from the City Council for funding the original “Cupertino Roundup”, the original name for WVCS and Pat served on the Board. They have been generous in their financial support over many years and Jim continues to serve as an unpaid mentor for the Board’s
planned giving program. Jim and Pat grew up in a small town in Missouri, met as sophomores in High school, and got married after college graduation. They moved to Denver where Pat taught, Jim graduated from law school and they had 3 children, Teresa, Christopher, and Steven. Teresa has a degree from UCLA, a Law school degree from Golden Gate University and is now a Sister at the St. Gertrude’s Benedictine Monastery in Idaho. Christopher has a degree from UC Berkeley and a PhD. from Harvard, and Steven has a degree from Stanford and a Ph.D. from University Of Michigan. Both sons are College professors.
Jim and Pat had been married 59 years at the time of her passing in September 2015.
K.A. & Martha Fisk
Although they were born more than 1,500 miles apart, K.A. Fisk and Martha Smothers were meant to be together. K was born in Oklahoma City, OK, and moved with his family to Fresno when he was a child. He was a graduate of Fresno High School, Whittier College, and he received a Masters Degree in Education from Stanford University.
Martha was right here in San Jose, 59 seconds after her twin sister. Martha went to Lincoln High School, and was an avid tennis player as a student. She earned her teaching credential from San Jose State, majoring in Sociology with a minor Design.
K. - or Mr. Fisk as he was known to his students and their families - was a beloved mentor, leader,
administrator, and friend. K began his career as a teacher in Orinda, California, and later worked as a principal in the San Jose Unified School District. K. spent more than 25 working as a principal in the Cupertino Union School District, impacting the lives and education of thousands of young people in the west valley until he retired in 1997.
Martha first caught K’s eye when she was working as a substitute teacher at Horace Mann School in San Jose. Martha was equally intrigued, and soon found her way to the
principal’s office, where they made a date to see “The Graduate”.
After their second date to a baseball game, they knew it was meant to be, and after a year of dating, they married.
K. and Martha were an adventurous couple and they loved to travel - some of their fondest memories were the trips they took with family and friends to places like Austria, Tibet, MachuPichu, China, Australia, Taiwan, New Zealand, Korea, Rome, Cuba, Mexico, and even a dude ranch in Colorado. They also loved tennis, boating and sailing, and entertaining friends at their home in Los Gatos. K. was also an avid golfer and skier, and he played the oboe. Martha loves to garden, once sold sailboats, used to own an interior design business, and is a foodee and an antique enthusiast. Together, they loved to laugh, and spend time with family and friends. At the celebration of K’s life, K’s pastime was listed as “chasing Martha”, and indeed, they were the loveof each other’s life, and married for 42 years. K. and Martha have two wonderful children - Darren and Jennifer - and five grandchildren - Lucas, Logan, Reed, Jordan, and Laine.
K. joined the West Valley Community Services Board of Directors in 2010. As a school administrator, he saw all of the children living in poverty in West San Jose and he wanted to make a difference. He was so impacted by his experience on the board that he convinced his good friend, Harvey Barnett, to join as well. Unfortunately, his time on the board was interrupted by illness, and K. passed away surrounded by his family in 2011. Since then, Martha has continued to support West Valley Community Services, regularly attending Chefs of Compassion, providing recommendations for our community garden, and more recently, helping to spread the word across Los Gatos about our work. Martha has earned a reputation as a dot connector, sharing our story and work with her community, and we are grateful for all she and K. have done to support low income and homeless families in the West Valley. It is such an honor to recognize K.A. and Martha Fisk for their work in support of West Valley Community Services.
West Valley College
The West Valley College community supports students along their pathways to reach transfer and career goals in an environment of academic excellence.
West Valley is about success. It’s about helping students create a future for themselves so they can contribute to a world that needs their talents, drive and enthusiasm. We do that by providing as much one-on-one interaction with students as possible. The results speak for themselves.
They include 598 students transferred to UCs and CSUs in the 2014/15 academic year. 751 students earned AA/AS degrees in 2014/15. 220 students earned Certificates that led to careers in 2014/15. We host learners from 25 countries who come to the United States looking for the kind of instruction that will help them contribute to the global economy.
A long time partner of WVCS, West Valley College offers classes on their beautiful 143-acre Saratoga campus in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, located at the southwest border of Silicon Valley. Here you can expand your mind, hang out with friends, and contemplate a world of ideas.
