Jessica Lawson

Co-Founder & Consultant

Jessica first came to Cabarete on Spring Break while a student at Dartmouth College in 2003. Her good friend and classmate was volunteering for The DREAM Project at the time and gave her a site tour where she had the opportunity to meet Patricia Suriel, founder of DREAM and Mariposa, and they immediately hit it off. Jessica and her friends returned the following year for Spring break where Patricia encouraged her to consider volunteering after graduation. Having grown up in downtown Chicago, Jessica was hesitant to move to such an unfamiliar environment but she stepped out of her comfort zone and joined them during the summer of 2005 where she took on the role of Summer Camp director. Originally planning to stay for only three months, she extended her stay for six months before returning to the United States and moving to San Francisco. 

While in San Francisco, Jessica worked at a boutique consulting firm where she collaborated with engagement managers, executives and support staff to help private and public sector leaders align, equip and mobilize their organizations to solve complex business problems and execute multi-dimensional strategies. During her time on the West coast, she kept in close contact with Patricia, helping with special projects and fundraising from afar and in 2008, Jessica returned to Cabarete to take a new position on the leadership team. 

In 2009 Jessica joined Patricia as the Co-founder and Associate Director of the Mariposa DR Foundation. She remained in the Dominican Republic for the first five years of the organization. Her work was instrumental in the formative years, earning her the Martin Luther King Social Justice award from her alma mater, Dartmouth College. Jessica returned to her hometown of Chicago in 2014 and began working as the founding community engagement director for the third largest public television station in the country. 

An avid cook for most of her life, Jessica stepped into her culinary career in 2020, launching Big Delicious Life, a successful food blog where she develops original, from-scratch recipes with fresh ingredients. In 2022 she appeared as a contestant on the first season of America’s Test Kitchen: The Next Generation on Amazon Freevee. 

Throughout all of her career changes, one thing has remained constant - her commitment to Mariposa. Jessica remains heavily involved in the organization as a consultant, assisting with social media, grant writing, fundraising, donor engagement and other special projects. You’ll find her here in Cabarete, her second home, a few times a year to help lead student groups, run special events, develop recipes and train culinary staff and spend time with the Mariposa girls.