{"id":1006,"date":"2013-12-04T14:06:51","date_gmt":"2013-12-04T20:06:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/?p=1006"},"modified":"2013-12-04T14:20:15","modified_gmt":"2013-12-04T20:20:15","slug":"lesley-jacobs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2013\/12\/04\/lesley-jacobs\/","title":{"rendered":"LESLEY JACOBS"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"EXTRAORDINARY\"<\/a><\/p>\n

When 77-year-old Lesley Jacobs, better known to his numerous friends as \u201cJake,\u201d came to Lake Charles in August of 1956, he didn\u2019t have much.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything I owned I carried in a brown paper sack tied with string,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not surprising, given that Jacobs, a Godeau, La., native, never received a formal education (in fact, he can\u2019t read).\"SWEEPER1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

But what Jacobs has lacked in education, he\u2019s more than made up for with a positive attitude, and a willingness to work as hard as necessary in order to earn a good living.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just determined to make it. I\u2019ve always worked,\u201d he says with justifiable pride. \u201cI\u2019ve never drawn unemployment. I\u2019ve always believed that if you want to do something badly enough, you can do it. I\u2019ve just always had that get-up-and-go attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shortly after Jacobs arrived in Lake Charles, a friend, Jim Smith, wrote a letter to Manny Royer, then the manager of Weingarten\u2019s on Hwy. 14, recommending Jacobs for employment. Jacobs was hired in December of 1956, and worked at Weingarten\u2019s for 25 years \u201cin charge of the baggers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacobs\u2019 strong work ethic, his sunny and friendly disposition, and the contacts he\u2019d formed while working at Weingarten\u2019s played a key role in his next venture: starting and running his own business, All Area Sweepers.<\/p>\n

Jacobs\u2019 business provides parking lot sweeping services, bushhogging, and dirt service, including leveling, for a residential and commercial clientele. That client list ran at 30-40 when he first started the business. It now numbers about 60.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never wanted to have so many clients I couldn\u2019t do a good job,\u201d Jacobs says. \u201cAnd I\u2019ve never wanted to set the world on fire. At this point, I\u2019m just looking for enough business to keep me busy.\u201d<\/p>\n

His client list includes the City of Lake Charles, Reinauer Real Estate (He\u2019s worked for four generations of owners for the business), and IberiaBank.<\/p>\n

For the first 17 years he was in business, Jacobs swept parking lots by hand with a push broom. He now owns two sweeper trucks, purchased in 1975, and also has two tractors for use in the bushhogging aspect of the business.<\/p>\n

Along with his strong work ethic, Jacobs also prides himself on the fact that he\u2019s debt-free.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t owe anyone anything except respect,\u201d he says. \u201cI don\u2019t owe anyone money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacobs\u2019 hard work supported a large family \u2014 six daughters and five sons. And, he says, he\u2019s made it a point to pass on his work ethic to his children, and now his 33 grandchildren and 38 great-grandchildren.<\/p>\n

\u201cI raised all of my children to work hard,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd, as they say, when they left home, I broke the plate and buried the spoon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of Jacobs\u2019 children now have careers in healthcare. One daughter, Grace, works in a Houston-area school district as operations specialist.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was a wonderful father,\u201d says Grace Jacobs. \u201cI thank God every day for my father.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacobs has built his business, and earned quite a good reputation, based not only on hard and highly satisfactory work, but also on his positive attitude and friendly demeanor.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt IberiaBank, they\u2019ve changed my name,\u201d he quips. \u201cThey call me \u2018Sunshine.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Spend any time with Jacobs at all, and it quickly becomes apparent that he\u2019s not just friendly, but a true people person. And he\u2019s quick to help out those in need.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do work for free when and if people need me to,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m always trying to help people. And I try to give to the needy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacobs says, though, that more than the strong work ethic and positive attitude, sheer persistence has played a role in the life he\u2019s made for himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just determined to make it,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd I stuck with it. I never gave up.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When 77-year-old Lesley Jacobs, better known to his numerous friends as \u201cJake,\u201d came to Lake Charles in August of 1956, he didn\u2019t have much. \u201cEverything I owned I carried in a brown paper sack tied with string,\u201d he says. That\u2019s not surprising, given that Jacobs, a Godeau, La., native, never received a formal education (in [&hellip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":1010,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[103],"tags":[4,105,51,107,104,106],"yoast_head":"\nLESLEY JACOBS - BestOfSwla<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2013\/12\/04\/lesley-jacobs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"LESLEY JACOBS - BestOfSwla\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When 77-year-old Lesley Jacobs, better known to his numerous friends as \u201cJake,\u201d came to Lake Charles in August of 1956, he didn\u2019t have much. \u201cEverything I owned I carried in a brown paper sack tied with string,\u201d he says. 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