Honoring Legacy of Former Gallagher Volunteer Killed in Bomb Attack, Scholarships Awarded to Three for TheirService

Recipients Earning Degrees at Liberty, Towson, and Boston College

By Mark Cheshire

For their distinguished service in support of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, two staff members and a high school volunteer at Gallagher Services — Shelly Ibadin, Sarah Fisher, and Kate Ireland — have won the 2024 Anne Lindsey Otenasek Scholarship Awards.

Lindsey Otenasek was a longtime youth volunteer at Gallagher Services. Sadly, she lost her life as a passenger on Pan American Flight 103 over Lockerbie Scotland in 1988. These awards were generously created by the Otenasek family to honor Lindsey, and the scholarship has now been awarded to 136 recipients since its inception 34 years ago.

The Otenaseks chose to dedicate the awards to those affiliated with Gallagher because Lindsey chose to dedicate herself to the organization’s invaluable work. Inspired by her volunteer service at Gallagher, Lindsey was preparing in college for a career working with deaf children.

This year’s awards ceremony was held at Gallagher’s main campus in Timonium on May 16. There, Lindsey’s brother Richard encouraged the scholarship winners, stating that the best way to honor his sister’s legacy is to “keep doing what you’re doing” and to “pay it forward” by continuing to help others in need.

And that’s exactly what all three winners of the $5,000 scholarship are doing.
Shelly Ibadin, a direct support professional with Gallagher since December 2022, is just one semester away from completing a master’s degree in public health at Liberty University. About her work, Ibadin said: “Putting smiles on faces makes me feel fulfilled.”

Sarah Fisher, the director of long-term services and supports and data management at Gallagher, will complete her degree in family and human services at Towson University in the fall. “I want to thank the Otenasek family for supporting continuing education,” she said.

Kate Ireland, a senior at Maryvale Preparatory School who will begin university studies in the fall at Boston College, has been volunteering at Gallagher for four years. Like Lindsey Otenasek before her, Ireland has served as a Special Friend to a Gallagher resident.

Established more than 40 years ago by Father Ray Chase, the Special Friends program pairs high school students with Gallagher residents and children from St. Vincent’s Villa and Villa Maria School. Together, they share friendship and spiritual growth.

Father Ray introduced Lindsey, then a student at Notre Dame Preparatory School, to the program. She paired with Joleen Bouknight, who lived in Gallagher’s main center. Her commitment to Jolene went well beyond the one-year requirement and led to her decision to specialize in special education as a college student at Western Maryland College (now McDaniel College).

To read more about the Anne Lindsey Otenasek Scholarships, click here. For more about Gallagher Services, which provides residential and meaningful day supports to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, click here.