Leah Deni

On December 22, 2004 Leah Deni passed away.

She was at the core of everything that we do at UEI.

Leah lived each day to its fullest, inspiring all of us to be our best, dream big, laugh, play, and believe in ourselves. As the Out-of-School Time Program Director and Partnership Liaison, she was much more than just a colleague - she was our friend, mentor, and inspiration.

We will never forget her devotion to our work with urban young people, the energy she brought to all of the groups she worked with, and the support she provided to all of us at UEI and in the larger community. Her bright spirit and enthusiasm were contagious. Whether coordinating a multi-city collaborative around urban environmental education, demonstrating how combined sewage outflow pipes work for a group of after school program staff or organizing an all-staff fridge clean-up at the UEI office, Leah approached every task with tremendous energy, talent, and compassion. Her efforts have made our out-of-school programs possible.

But we weren't the only ones who knew that Leah's work had to go on.

In the first months of 2005 we established the Leah K. Deni Fund and received such a tremendous outpouring of support from Leah's family, friends, neighbors, and former classmates that we were able to start our youth mentorship program in environmental stewardship and civic participation, LEAH. Their generosity has left us forever grateful and in awe that one young woman could have touched so many wonderful people so deeply.

Today the lives enriched through LEAH remain her gift to us and our tribute to her.