The Lighten Family sadly lost their matriarch, Janifer Lynn Lighten, on Friday, February 10th, 2012. Mrs. Lighten, who was 50 years old, succumbed unexpectedly to cancer. She departed peacefully, surrounded by her family and friends in her New Rochelle home.
Mrs. Lighten, a former Wall Street banker, turned full-time wife to her husband William Lighten and mother of four to Adrienne, Alexis, Christopher and Michael. She focused her formidable talents on serving her alma mater, Yale University, as well as local organizations in the non-profit sector in her beloved community of New Rochelle, New York.
Mrs. Lighten was the inaugural President and CEO of the Yale Black Alumni Association. Additionally, she dutifully served numerous organizations in her community including the Board of the New Rochelle Public Library Foundation and The Boys and Girls Club of New Rochelle. She and her children founded the Remington Leadership Financial Literacy Program at the Remington Unit of the Boys and Girls Club of New Rochelle. She also served on the Head of School Committee and the Executive Board of the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, New York, her children’s secondary school. Furthermore, she was a Trustee of the Jack and Jill of America Foundation and held various leadership positions with The Links, Incorporated and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
In 2010, in recognition of her community service and Philanthropic endeavors, Mrs. Lighten received a resolution from New York State Senator Andrea Stewart Cousins which stated “Rare indeed is the occurrence of such compassionate blending of strength, intellect and commitment as that demonstrated by Janifer Lynn Lighten over a lifetime of sacrifice and dedication to others…”
She was a faithful and active member of Grace Baptist Church in Mt. Vernon, New York, where she co-founded the Grace Innovation Ministry, an investment educational development ministry.
Her homegoing services will be conducted by the Reverend Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, senior pastor at Grace Baptist Church at 52 South Sixth Avenue in Mount Vernon, New York.
The arrangements are as follows:
The wake will be held on Wednesday, February 15th from 6:00-9:00 p.m. and funeral services will be held on Thursday, February 16th at 11:00 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Lighten Family Foundation which focuses on Education, Mentoring, Social Services, and Legal Defense for Urban Youth. Donations can be mailed to:
The Lighten Family Foundation
c/o UBS
299 Park Avenue-26th floor
New York, NY 10171
Attn: Robert Sechan