The Jackson Byck Scholarship
In honor of Jackson Charles Byck
December 20, 1998 - August 7, 2022

The idea for this scholarship was sparked by very dear friends of ours and the initial seed money for what we hope will become an endowed fund was provided by the following individuals: Beth and Dean Vegosen, Kristi and Kostas Mallios, Shelly and Arch Meredith, Kristine and Mark Wilkerson, Lisa and Walt Fuller, and Peg and Dan Hoover.

They took the time to discuss Jackson’s wishes with him, so that his memory will live on through the students who have who have battled cancer, and who otherwise might not be able to attend college. It is our hope that perhaps maybe one of these students will go on to contribute to a cure one day. The Byck family is incredibly grateful to these individuals as well as to all others who contribute to this fund.

We believe it every child / teen who has survived cancer is a warrior. And we are thrilled to announce that in 2023 we were able to award three scholarships to extraordinary recipients through the Jackson Byck scholarship fund. It is our goal to keep continuing to fund the beautiful survivors whose soul passion is to follow their dreams. This year we also awarded one legacy scholarship, a four-year scholarship to a single individual whom we believe showed exemplary promise in the fields that Jackson was most interested in. It is our plan to award more of these legacy scholarships as these individuals come along. We encourage those who are interested to apply through Cancer for College and submit a two-minute video. Be creative, tell us who you are, and let us get to know you. It would be our honor to help you achieve your dreams.

Jackson Byck was a warrior. Full Stop.

Jackson Byck

No 19-year-old should ever be told they have cancer, but when Jackson learned about his diagnosis, he faced it with a gravitas that is often saved for the greatest leaders and icons of our time.

It is rare that parents are so incredibly humbled by their children; especially when that child is a young man of 19 years old. Jackson was just beginning to touch the edge of what he was capable of – just beginning to explore the life lessons that only the highs and lows can bring – packing some of the most significant life learnings into a four-year fight for his life that would change the lives of so many.

Never did we believe that a tiny, beautiful human being, born to us in December, 1998, would teach us more about courage and tenacity than all the degrees, travels, and careers we’ve packed into this life of ours. Jackson Byck was a warrior. Full stop. He brought more humility, grace, humor, and love to our family than we could have ever dreamed.

Jackson_Dann_Byck

On November 4, 2018, Jackson was diagnosed with Ocular Melanoma (“OM” for short). Because of his genetic predisposition and the size of the tumor, his life expectancy was set at a brief 6 months. He exceeded that by almost 3 1/2 years.

What emerged from that initial diagnosis in our son is nothing short of a miracle. He calmly reached out for help, he followed the playbooks that the doctors and specialists threw at him, and he took our hands in his own, and set out on a journey of history-making treatments, trials, and exploratory programs.

Ocular melanoma is a cancer of the eye diagnosed in approximately 2,000 adults annually in the United States. This equates to approximately 5 cases per 1 million people per year. Among people under 50 years old, the case rate shrinks to 5 in 21,000,000 per year.

Unfortunately, Jackson happened to be one of the 5.

Jackson’s warrior spirit gave him the courage to make others feel at ease under tense circumstances, grim news, and painful procedures. There have been tears, laughter, deep talks, and discoveries we would have never experienced as an intimate family of four had Jackson not been the warrior that he is.

And throughout, Jackson continued to go to college managing to make the Dean’s list every semester while on experimental treatments until his body finally couldn’t take any more. College was incredibly important to Jackson, and even though he was one semester shy of graduating, he received honors and recognition of excellence from the University of Colorado in Boulder.

This is Jackson Byck

The mission of the Jackson Byck Scholarship is to help create a college future for those both in financial need and who have fought the fight to beat cancer. As Jackson is an avid gamer, special consideration will be made for those pursuing a career in gaming, computers, marketing, engineering ,science and medicine. Learn more about Jackson in his own words

In his honor, we have created the Jackson Byck Scholarship to empower other warriors who have been diagnosed with cancer to go to college. We can only hope that one day there will be a cure for OM and perhaps one of the Jackson Byck Scholarship recipients will help develop that cure.

Since 1993, Cancer for College has been providing financial support to the cancer community in the form of college scholarships, educational experiences and medical debt relief. The mission has been simple, if you are a cancer survivor with a household income of $150K or less and attending an accredited college, university or trade school, you can apply for help.

Since inception, we have awarded over $8M in support to the cancer community while helping survivors from across the United States.

What’s Up with Jackson’s Eye?

Jackson lost his eye due to his cancer, but instead of wearing a prosthetic that looks like his other eye, Jackson chose the Rinnegan. (https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Rinnegan)

Based on a Naruto connection, one of his favorite anime shows and manga series, Jackson had a deep emotional connection to the “Naruto” character. He loved the series and the books related to characters’ interactions with each other.

The Rinnegan (輪廻眼, literally meaning: Saṃsāra Eye) is reputed as the most exalted eye amongst the "Three Great Dōjutsu" the others being the Sharingan and the Byakugan. It is said that in times of disorder, one who wields the Rinnegan is sent down from the heavens to become either a "God of Creation" who will calm the world or a "God of Destruction" who will reduce everything to nothingness. The Rinnegan is characterized by concentric circles covering the eyeball.

The Trailblazers Working with Jackson

In the letters that follow, you will hear from some of the extraordinary physicians and researchers that are changing the way cancer is treated. It is through their tenacious work that warriors like Jackson will live and love another day. Their work helped turn 6 months into almost 4 years. Imagine what it will do in the future.

"I first met Jackson when he was a few days old but then our families moved to different parts of the country. I reconnected with Jackson when his parents told me he had been diagnosed with an aggressive and rare form of melanoma. It just so happened that my research was focused on developing a personalized vaccine for patients with rare tumors and we realized that what we were doing could help him. Over the next 2 years, we created a vaccine for Jackson and treated him in San Diego. For every dose of the vaccine, given every 3 weeks, Jackson would come to stay with me and we would drive together to the cancer center to get his treatment. I got to know him and see that he was a wonderful young man with a great sense of integrity, empathy, and outlook on life. As it often turns out, I benefited more from the experience than the other way around. Scientifically, we discovered new techniques in our research through working with Jackson that we have already applied in other patients. What we learned from Jackson brings us closer to curing cancer. Personally, I was so inspired by this young man who was just at the start of his adult life with so much promise facing a reality with bravery and alacrity. I will never forget that. Jackson made me a better person in the time I got to know him."

Ezra Cohen, MD,
Medical Oncologist, Chief, Division of Hematology-Oncology
Associate Director, Translational Science,
Moores Cancer Center - UCSD

"We live our lives with assumptions of ongoing health because we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. Those heroic persons, who when faced with insurmountable odds of a cancer diagnosis, strove to serve all those who come after by taking part in developing the cures of tomorrow through the clinical trials of today, as imperfect as they are. Jackson Byck will today and always be a North Star to that end, a cancer-free tomorrow."

Michael Claus V Jensen, MD
Vice President, Seattle Children's Therapeutics,
and Chief Therapeutics Officer
Seattle Children’s Hospital

"I first met Jackson in 2019 shortly after his primary uveal melanoma diagnosis. From the start, Jackson approached the cancer, the treatment, and life with courage, maturity, and humor. I will never forget when he was showing me all the crazy eye prosthesis choices he was considering, since a simple eye to match his own wouldn't be nearly as fun. He participated in clinical trials both to help himself and always hoping to move the field forward and help others. Once metastatic, he acknowledged the battle, but he never let that stop him from living. He has been an inspiration and has given me a reason to never stop working towards finding a cure."

Marlana Orloff, MD
Associate Professor
Department of Medical Oncology
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

for more information about Jackson, please go to www.jacksonbyck.com