10/01/2026
"It’s comforting to know that Tracy's legacy of working with individuals with special needs is carrying on in the work of others with the help of this fund.”
In 2023, after the sudden loss of his wife, Tracy Eberhardt, her husband, Jon, and their daughters, Taylor and Danika, created the Tracy S. Eberhardt Memorial Fund to honor her and the more than two decades of dedication to special education and support special needs programs in Westmoreland County schools and organizations.
In a little more than two years, the fund has issued 15 grants totaling more than $35,000, including school districts that serve individuals with special needs like Belle Vernon, Hempfield and Latrobe. The grants were used to acquire equipment, materials and services that will help students for years to come.
Other organizations who have benefited from the fund include: the Stoneybrook Foundation, which provides therapeutic horseback riding for special needs individuals; the Miracle League of Western PA, which conducts sports leagues for individuals with special needs; and Team Friends – Westmoreland County, which offers programs for adults with special needs.
The fund also seeds a scholarship at Seton Hill University for a junior or senior student from Westmoreland County majoring in special education. Jon hopes that the scholarship will help a student that shares Tracy’s passion for special education and that her spirit will live on with young teachers. The first scholarship recipient, Lynsey Breth from Mt. Pleasant, graduated this past spring and began her career as a preschool special education teacher in August.
“It is great to see others helping in the community, no matter what the cause that person feels is important to them,” Jon Eberhardt said. “In our case, it is heartwarming to see the support that Tracy’s memorial fund has received and it’s comforting to know that her legacy of working with individuals with special needs is carrying on in the work of others with the help of this fund.”
