Pamela Ryan Jacobs Vogt ’62
Pamela Ryan Jacobs Vogt, well-known in the Western New York community for her enduring philanthropic support and dedication to the region, received the 2016 Distinguished Alumna Award from Daemen College.
After graduating from Holy Angels Academy, Jacobs Vogt earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Daemen (formerly Rosary Hill College) and then pursued graduate studies at the University at Buffalo.
Jacobs Vogt had a successful career in education as an English teacher at Buffalo’s Bennett High School, and as a teacher for adult education in the Hispanic community and special tutorial classes for foreign executives in New York City. She also served as executive assistant to Dorothy Sarnoff, a pioneer of the self-help movement, in the 1970s, and was a trustee for the State University of New York at Buffalo, Albany, N.Y., from 1995-2005.
A devoted philanthropist and education advocate for more than 40 years with many local organizations, she has served on several area educational boards, including Niagara University, Holy Angels Academy, Canisius High School, Nichols School and the Elmwood Franklin School. She has also devoted her time and talents to the Buffalo Council on World Affairs, SABAH, and the Sisters of St. Francis Executive Council, among others.
With her late husband, internationally acclaimed researcher Dr. Lawrence D. Jacobs, she supported various projects in the medical and educational sectors. In addition, Jacobs Vogt and her second husband, the late Peter Vogt, focused on supporting cultural projects and the Buffalo community.
Jacobs Vogt is chair of the Lawrence D. Jacobs M.D. Memorial Foundation and is a founding member of the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation, for which she serves as a trustee. She is currently involved with various charity boards, including Jefferson Awards and Artpark & Company.
Her extensive contributions as a member of the Daemen Board of Trustees and as a strong supporter of the college have been recognized with the college’s President’s Medal and an honorary doctorate of humane letters.
A lifelong resident of Buffalo, Jacobs Vogt is the proud mother of five children.