In January 2023, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Salt Lake City learned of the tragic passing of Maura Coursey, then a graduate student at Princeton University, but also a former member of the team in Utah. Maura, the former gender equity & safety coordinator, worked closely with newly arrived families to ensure equitable access to health programming while providing intensive services to survivors of domestic violence and gender-based violence.

In the months following Maura’s passing, her parents, Mary and Jeff, grieved alongside a wide community of friends and family who love Maura deeply, remembering her passion to support others and build connections. During this time, one of Maura’s cousins suggested that Mary and Jeff could create a fund in Maura’s name, honoring the passions she pursued. Earlier this year, Mary and Jeff contributed $14,000 raised to the IRC in Salt Lake City in honor of Maura’s memory and to inspire others to take action in their community. With these funds, the IRC in Salt Lake City has established the Maura Coursey Memorial Fund in support of survivors served through our work.

“It was really spontaneous, and we had some help in our family to create this fund,” Mary noted in a recent discussion with Jonessa White, IRC’s health program manager. “We felt if we could continue her work in some small way by supporting projects she cared deeply about, it would honor her and make her proud. I want to point out how unique Maura was in her passion and her power. She was truly a force of nature, able to light a fire under everyone who knew her. ‘Just do better. Be better, we can all be brighter, we can all do more,’ she would say. So, the Maura Coursey Fund – this is us doing better, doing more.”

Mary shared that Maura was driven to change systems, raise awareness and break down stereotypes. She said Maura would annually consume massive United Nations reports about global sex-trafficking trends, while helping those around her understand that this issue not only affected women but also children and men. As she learned and grew, Maura became a more and more effective communicator, able to impact policies to create meaningful and positive change in systems that had stagnated under the status quo. Ultimately, this led her to embark on a master’s program at Princeton University in public policy, designed to help her fulfill her dream to become an agent of change. 

“We all thought she was going to change the world,” Mary reflected. 

For Jeff, the simple question ‘What would Maura do?’ sums up her legacy. “I think a lot of people that we know in our orbit – and I get the feeling from the impact she had at Princeton and her work here in Salt Lake – are inspired by her passion and how she led her life. I ask myself quite often, ‘What would Maura do?’” Jeff continued, “We recognize the small dent that this money can make in the extent of the problem, but every person that this [contribution] can help makes a difference, and leverages what other people can add.”

Mary adds, “Maura lived by example. She thought every person should act with the utmost integrity toward others. By setting a high bar, she helped us realize that all of us truly have the capacity to be better, kinder, more responsible for our actions from moment to moment…Really, it is because of Maura who inspired and gave so much love that we were able to collect the money to give. To everyone who expressed their love in that way, we have so much gratitude.”

Mary and Jeff hope others will be inspired by Maura’s approach to life by serving others and holding each other to a higher standard.

From everyone at the IRC in Salt Lake City, we are deeply grateful to Mary and Jeff for carrying on Maura’s passion to serve others, especially survivors of domestic violence, through the establishment of the Maura Coursey Memorial Fund. For those inspired by Maura’s legacy and would like to contribute to the Memorial Fund, start the conversation by emailing Jesse Sheets, development director, at [email protected].

This article was written and published in collaboration with Mary and Jeff Coursey.