On July 25th, 2020, Jackson Weis, his mother, and his father were involved in a car accident in which Jackson tragically passed away. He was born September 5, 2010 in Toledo, Ohio. From an early age, Jackson demonstrated a certain understanding about how his actions and attitude affect everyone around him; so he lead his life with optimism and love, a caring and compassionate nature that very few have - he never had a bad day - and this optimism and love of life shined through every aspect of his life. This made Jackson a joy to be around and never failed to put smiles on everyone's face. Jackson was a caring and loving boy who made sure that everyone felt included and had their voices heard. Jackson will always be lovingly remembered for his welcoming smile and the warm kindness he offered to everyone he met. Jackson touched the lives of every person he encountered in the short amount of time he was given and he will be sorely missed by many.

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Jackson was going into the fourth grade at Stranahan Elementary where he regularly earned the PAWS Award for being Positive, Accountable, Well-Managed and Self Controlled. Jackson was a very bright child who excelled at, and loved, math. However, Jackson’s love for sports surpassed his love for school. His fierce competitiveness and love for competing drove him to play any, and every, sport he could. He played football, baseball, soccer, and hockey, but his love for hockey surpassed all other sports he was involved in. Jackson started playing organized hockey at the age of 3 and skated with numerous teams. Most recently, he was on the Sylvania North Stars, playing with the same group of beloved teammates for the past 5 years. Jackson also played travel soccer with the 2010 Red Team through Pacesetter in Sylvania. 

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In honoring Jackson, his family has started the "Jackson Weis Youth Athletic Achievement Fund." This fund's use will be to help youth sports, through individual recipients to providing equipment to an organization in need. Jackson loved playing all sports to meet different types of people. This fund will focus on individuals from any background that would like to expand their love of sports by playing a sport not traditionally associated with their background, or perhaps do not have the financial means to do so.

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In part of this, one of the other things that always frustrated Jackson was a lack of a place for kids to just get together and play Hockey in his hometown Sylvania, Ohio. There are playgrounds, baseball fields, pickleball courts, pools, and even a skatepark, but no free outdoor public Hockey rink. We want to make a simple outdoor public hockey rink where kids can gather and learn the sport, practice, play, socialize, and share a love of the game. It is a shame that we are a city of so much pride in the sport of Hockey but we skipped the most basic thing kids need, a safe place to gather and play, where there is no financial impediment to playing and kids of different ages and skill sets can learn and get better together. Most importantly, perhaps, this is the place where a kid gets that spark for the game, and that makes it worth more than the money spent all while honoring Jackson. To achieve this in honor of Jackson with his name on it represents everything he stood for. When two strangers meet and are strangers no more in Jackson's rink, it brings joy to the heart knowing that he made that possible.