March 1, 2016

Sandy Gluckman Jacobs

Sandy Gluckman Jacobs was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa. Her father came from Lithuania as a boy of 14, brought over by his own father who had traveled ahead to earn money and gradually bring the family out one at a time. Just before the war, her father managed to get the woman he loved out of Lithuania, an act she describes as saving her life. Sandy grew up in Orange Grove, attending Orange Grove Primary School and a girls high school in Johannesburg, and recalls a carefree, happy childhood surrounded by loving parents and close friends. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts, honors, master's, and finally a PhD in psychology.

Concerned by the high crime rate and constant fear in Johannesburg during the mid to late 1990s, Sandy and her family decided to leave South Africa, coming to America around 1998. The move was eased by the fact that her son Gary was already living in Dallas and had visited the city many times, making it feel like a second home. Determined not to leave her elderly parents behind, she brought them along; her mother had won the green card lottery, allowing them to immigrate together. Her cousin Barbara had also already settled in Dallas. Sandy became a U.S. citizen and considers herself a proud American, often joking with audiences that she is an African American.

Professionally, Sandy worked in leadership development, coaching CEOs and senior organizational leaders and traveling extensively to help employees become creative, involved, and committed. She wrote a book titled Who's in the Driver's Seat. After the deaths of her parents, whom she lovingly cared for through her father's heart failure and her mother's Alzheimer's, she redirected her work toward helping children with learning, behavior, and mood challenges without drugs. In Dallas she and her family became involved in a local congregation, describing themselves as very proud to be Jewish though not highly religious. Israel has always been central to her identity; she has a brother who has lived in Haifa for decades. She endured the sudden loss of her daughter Cheryl to meningitis, and her son Gary and his two boys live just minutes away.

Read Full Transcript