Jason Bousley

My name is Koren Bousley, and I have spent the last 20 years with my wonderful husband, Jason Bousley. During our life’s journey together, we have welcomed two beautiful children into our lives, Abby (15) and Jakob (13).

On Sunday September 24th, the lives of our family changed dramatically when my husband Jason passed away unexpectedly at the age of 51 after suffering a stroke. Jason spent his entire life dedicated to his family and friends and making sure that he was always there for them in times of need, no matter what personal sacrifices that he had to make along the way. The sheer number of prayers, thoughts, and condolences that we have received from family and friends from all over the country is a testament to the positive impact that Jason had on everyone that he met. Our family is truly appreciative and humbled by everyone that has reached out, and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

While members of our families have been working closely together to prepare Jason’s “Celebration of Life”, my brother-in-law, Brian, told me that he thought that it would be important to take extra steps to make sure that all the future needs that Abby & Jakob had been met. Brian recommended that we start a GoFundMe account to raise money to fund the future college costs for both Abby & Jakob as this would be a large financial burden on me. As you would expect, my mind has been so occupied in dealing with this tragedy that the future past this weekend was the furthest thing from my mind. Thinking about it now, my life and the lives of my children changed dramatically when my husband passed away and these funds would be a great help in helping my children to achieve their college degrees. While my brother-in-law doesn’t have good ideas very often, this one made sense and it is what my husband would have wanted as he loved his children beyond measure.

All week since my husband’s passing, we have received hundreds of e-mails, Facebook messages, phone calls, and snail mail telling stories about how they loved Jason and how he impacted their lives for the better. We have also received countless questions about how people could honor Jason and help our family. It was at this point that my brother-in-law’s idea started to make some sense.

By opening this GoFundMe page, I am attempting to support my children to reach their life goals, as their father would have wanted, and allow others to donate to this cause whether their lives were impacted by our family, or they are simply reading this story and can in some way relate to what our family is going through. As humans, we all go through losses in our lives and my story is just one of many. My husband Jason lived his life in the service of others whether it be family, friends, or complete strangers and I am hopeful that this college fund for our children will allow people to celebrate his life while helping to provide future opportunities for our children. Whether Jake continues with swimming and music, or Abby takes her rugby or swimming to the next level, a college degree will help them to achieve their goals in life. This was Jason’s core mission as their father.

Whatever inspiration that you take from my story, Jason would tell you to make sure that you hug your loved ones tightly and often just as he did as life can change in an instant. Blessings to you and yours.

Best Wishes,

Koren Bousley