Baron & Budd Announces Fall 2025 Mesothelioma Cancer Victims Memorial Scholarship Winners

Scholarship winners Angie Guifarro and Jarrett Murphy share their personal stories about how cancer has impacted their lives.

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The nationally recognized law firm Baron & Budd selected Angie Guifarro and Jarrett Murphy as the winners of the Mesothelioma Cancer Victims Memorial Scholarship. Each winner will receive a $2,500 scholarship paid directly to the financial aid accounts at their universities.

Applicants were asked to submit a written or video essay about how cancer has impacted their lives. Angie Guifarro was selected as the winner of the written essay contest after a competitive review by the Baron & Budd Scholarship committee. In her essay titled “The Little Things,” Guifarro detailed how she and her mother moved in together in summer 2020 during the early pandemic and embraced each other’s company. However, one year later, her mom received her diagnosis of Stage III uterine cancer. She details the long, arduous journey of ups and downs until mid-2024, when her mother’s medications no longer worked and her physical health deteriorated.

“During visits, I’d urge doctors for alternative treatments and answers, and that’s when I noticed: the diminished urgency for my mom’s exams and follow-ups, the subtle pauses before they would exit the room, and the look that contradicted the comfort they tried to verbalize. The little things,” she wrote. Eventually, a week before Thanksgiving, Guifarro received her mother’s prognosis. For the following months, she stayed by her mother’s side and cared for her as she became bedridden. In those moments, she learned to feel a deep sense of gratitude for the little things, “For the smile I would get when replacing the warm blankets, the nod of approval for playing a favorite song, the random bursts of energy and childhood stories. The little things.”

As a tribute to her mother, Guifarro is now attending the University of Central Florida where she is pursuing a degree in finance. After graduation, she plans to start out as an analyst and eventually work her way up into workplace consulting or workplace strategy.

Secondarily, Jarrett Murphy was selected as the video essay winner. In his video, he shares about how his mother was diagnosed with lymphoma as he was beginning his graduate studies. Because of this, Murphy considered deferring his education as he was uncertain about his ability to focus on his studies.

However, his mother urged him to continue. Alongside his courses, he supported his mother through multiple rounds of chemotherapy. Despite how difficult it was on her body and mind; she continued to smile and encourage him in his studies. While Murphy would drive hours at a time between home and school to support his mother, she too would support him by continually affirming to him how important it was that he succeeded.

“Watching my mom battle lymphoma taught me more about grace, discipline, and consistency more than any textbook ever could. She never let her diagnosis define her, and even on her weakest days, she found ways to uplift others – including me,” said Jarrett.

Murphy’s former professor at Ohio State University spoke highly of him said, “Throughout my time advising Jarrett, he has consistently shown a strong work ethic and has produced quality, timely work. He is highly adaptable, dependable, intelligent, and very motivated to improve the mental and behavioral health of minoritized youth, especially Black youth.”

Murphy is currently pursuing a master’s in psychology at Ohio State University. After graduation, he wants to work at the Department of Education or a juvenile detention center with the ultimate goal of opening his own private practice one day.

“Angie and Jarrett have demonstrated remarkable resilience and strength to transform personal hardship into purpose and hope. Their life stories reflect the heart of our program as we seek to provide support to individuals whose lives have been affected by cancer. We are honored to support their educational goals and grateful for the opportunity to invest in their promising futures,” said President and Managing Shareholder Russell Budd.

The Mesothelioma Cancer Victims Memorial Scholarship was established to honor the legacy of the thousands of Americans who are diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer every year. For more information about the Baron & Budd Mesothelioma Cancer Victims Memorial Scholarship, please visit baronandbudd.com/mesothelioma-lawyer/scholarships/.

About Baron & Budd, P.C.

With more than 40 years of experience, Baron & Budd has the expertise and resources to handle complex litigation throughout the United States. As a law firm that takes pride in remaining at the forefront of litigation, Baron & Budd has spearheaded many significant cases for hundreds of public entities and tens of thousands of individuals. Since the firm was founded in 1977, Baron & Budd has achieved substantial national acclaim for its work on cutting-edge litigation, trying hundreds of cases to verdict and settling tens of thousands of cases in areas of litigation as diverse and significant as dangerous and highly addictive pharmaceuticals, defective medical devices, asbestos and mesothelioma, wildfires, environmental contamination, fraudulent banking practices, e-cigarettes, motor vehicles, federal whistleblower cases, and other consumer fraud issues.

Debra Collier
Marketing Manager
Steven T. Baron
Shareholder
MediaRelations@baronbudd.com