Jessica (Jesse) Walsh, Esq., has built her winding academic and professional journey around a deep, lifelong commitment to service and community engagement. From the time she was in elementary school, spending afternoons rescuing and nurturing injured neighborhood animals to her service as an AmeriCorps teacher and now as a community volunteer and associate attorney at Liff, Walsh & Simmons, Jesse has dedicated herself to helping others.

Jesse believes that giving back is an essential component of being a leader. “I think most of the people connected to CFAAC would agree that they want to live and/or work in a community that believes all of us should have access to the minimum human requirements of food, healthcare, shelter, safety, and employment,” said Jesse, whose practice focuses on estate planning, estate administration, and end-of-life issues.

“Every single one of us, regardless of how successful we are, needs others to obtain these things. Giving back is just an acknowledgement of that basic principle.”

Working with CFAAC, said Jesse, enables her to focus on her area of expertise and keep fees down for her clients by referring them to CFAAC’s expert assistance with charitable giving. “There’s a popular saying that your ‘network is your net worth,’ and having CFAAC in my network substantially increases my value to my clients, because they know we work as a cohesive team to support their legacy goals,” she said.

“I have many clients who want to include charitable giving as part of their estate planning, but they aren’t necessarily sure what organizations to select,” added Jesse. “CFAAC is such a great resource to direct them to — they have all of the institutional knowledge of nonprofits and community efforts, and can speak to the integrity of each organization. But the best part of the partnership is that I can simply name a fund in my client’s will or trust, and then they work with CFAAC at no cost to iron out all of the details. They don’t have to come back and pay me to update anything if they change their minds on which organizations they wish to support in the future — CFAAC handles all of that for them.”

Jesse earned a BS degree from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, her MPH from Boston University, and her Juris Doctor at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. Jesse is actively engaged in the legal community as a member of the Maryland State Bar, Anne Arundel Bar Association, The Women’s Bar Association of Maryland, and the Anne Arundel Estate Planning Council where she currently serves as vice president and will assume the role of president in 2026.

Beyond her professional commitments, Jesse volunteers as a member of the Ethics Committee at Hospice of the Chesapeake, and is also a member of the Flagship 2026 class of Leadership Anne Arundel, working on a volunteer project for the nonprofit Charting Careers.

Please plan to join CFAAC to honor Jesse and eight Celebration of Philanthropy Award recipients on Wednesday, October 29 at LIVE! Casino Hotel® Maryland. 

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