Marysue Jacobs Enjoys Helping Children And Horses
By Kendall Bierer
Marysue Jacobs has been a fixture in Wellington for more than 20 years. With her love of animals and children, she is forging a path for success and positivity in the local community.
Most recently, Jacobs has shown her support for Wellington through her work with actor Quinton Aaron and the Vinceremos Therapeutic Riding Center. Drawn to Aaron’s anti-bullying message, Jacobs has donated time and money to further the goals of the Quinton Aaron Foundation, including an all-new riding camp for at-risk children.
In her day job, Jacobs is one of the region’s most sought-after real estate professionals as the broker at Destiny International Properties. For Jacobs, her passion for children, founded in her love for her daughter and her desire to help create a better future, is what guided her to the equestrian mecca of Wellington two decades ago.
In the early 1990s, Palm Beach Polo & Country Club was thriving in Wellington with such celebrities as Prince Charles, Princess Diana and Zsa Zsa Gábor making it a regular stop on their polo tours. Jacobs was hired to put on an event called the Da Vinci Horse Project during the Rolex Cup, and at that time, she fell in love with the world of Wellington, making the decision to move here from Maryland.
“We were able to bring all these different people together, and it was great,” Jacobs smiled. “I fell in love with Wellington, and I stayed. I realized that I could be so effective here with the multitude of people I could get in front of to help charities.”
Channeling her passion for nonprofits, and combining it with her love for all things equestrian, Jacobs opened her own marketing company in 1994. It was such a success that it stemmed into a national magazine, The Horseman, and two television shows, The Florida Horseman and Real Angels, which ran back-to-back on a local ABC station.
Such celebrities as Tommy Lee Jones, Julianne Hough, Dr. Ben Carson, Gregg Allman, the band Sister Hazel, Disney star Cody Linley and Amber Marshall of the hit Canadian television show Heartland have worked with Jacobs to promote charities and continue her mission to teach and encourage children that success is a result of hard work and honesty.
“We did this to encourage kids that good behavior can get good results, and that fame is not instant and neither is wealth — if you work hard for it, it comes,” Jacob said.
She lives by the practice she preaches.
“I love what I do in real estate, and I enjoy having a company that prides itself on 24-hour service,” Jacobs said. “You don’t get my assistant, you don’t get a voicemail, you get me. I like the fact that my clients become my friends, and that my business thrives on referrals.”
Jacobs has more than 30 years of experience buying and selling equestrian farms, luxury estate homes, land development, new construction, investment properties and foreclosures. With her skilled team, they have been in the top one percent of the nation in sales for nine consecutive years. She has accrued more than $900 million in sales since the company’s inception.
Destiny International Properties has donated time and money to many local organizations, including her work with Aaron, an acclaimed actor most notably known for his leading role in the 2009 film The Blind Side. He came to Wellington in November for Horses Healing Hearts’ inaugural Cowboy Up for a Cause event, as well as to visit local schools to share uplifting and inspiring speeches to children affected by bullying.
At Cowboy Up for a Cause, which Jacobs sponsored, the introduction was made between Aaron and Jacobs. It was Jacobs’ passion for the children, and her own understanding as a loving mother and generous supporter of Wellington-area nonprofits, that she made a connection with Aaron and began formulating the concept with Ruth Menor of Vinceremos for an all-new riding camp for at-risk children.
It was Aaron’s affiliation with helping children that led to him to launch the Quinton Aaron Foundation, an anti-bullying and childhood obesity prevention program that promotes positivity and teaches coping skills to children who are negatively targeted by their peers. He has helped numerous children overcome the struggles of bullying, depression and low self-worth through his talks and the time he takes to correspond and make special visits that can change the course of their lives.
With the help of Aaron and his foundation, Jacobs teamed up as a sponsor with Vinceremos to host the first-ever “Taking the Reins” summer camp for at-risk youth. It will be held for three days during the summer of 2016, and Aaron will interact with the kids as a role model for them to be able to identify and relate to.
For Jacobs, lending a helping hand to both people and animals whenever she can is simply a part of who she is. More than 200 rescue animals call her farm their home, including dogs, cats, horses, donkeys, rabbits, turtles, tortoises, peacocks and 10 different varieties of parrots.
“I’ve been here for more than 20 years, and I love this town and love what I do,” Jacobs said. “I can mix work with my dream to help people.”
Jacobs continues to improve the lives of both the people and animals of the Wellington equestrian community through her philanthropic efforts and big heart.
For more information about Marysue Jacobs and Destiny International Properties, visit www.destinyinter.com. To learn more about the Quinton Aaron Foundation, visit www.quintonaaron.org. Learn more about Vinceremos by visiting www.vinceremos.org.
