Current and former Milwaukee Journal Sentinel staffers have launched a scholarship fund in honor of longtime reporter Meg Jones, who died last year after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer.
The scholarship will be awarded to journalism students from Wisconsin attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Jones’ alma mater. Organizers hope to raise $50,000.
“As someone who got to work with Meg and as a UW-Madison alum, I am grateful that this fund offers financial assistance and also that it spotlights Meg as an example and inspiration for future journalists,” said Joel Dresang, president of the Milwaukee Press Club Endowment, which is administering the scholarship, in a news release.
As part of the effort, the Meg Jones Scholarship Fund will host an online auction fundraiser beginning Nov. 15 and running for several weeks.
“She was a caring friend and colleague, who looked after those who were ailing, took interns and young reporters under her wing, and conspired with experienced journalists as they assigned themselves to the best stories they could find,” Journal Sentinel editor George Stanley wrote in a column announcing the fund.
Jones is one of seven inductees who will be honored on Nov. 18, with induction into the Wisconsin Newspaper Hall of Fame.
