Nightbirde leaves her mark in central Ohio in year after her death

Before she was winning the nation’s hearts on the stage of America’s Got Talent, Jane Marczewski — also known as Nightbirde — was making her mark on central Ohio.

Nearly a year after her death, she continues to do so.

The 31-year-old singer-songwriter, a Zanesville native, had established and maintained various ties to the area by the time she became a household name: She was a 2009 graduate of Licking County Christian Academy; was a waitress at Olive Garden in Heath; and assisted with youth ministry at Heath’s Cornerstone Church, where she was known for her playful sense of humor and joyful spirit.

Marczewski was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017, then declared cancer-free a year later; the cancer returned in 2020, and Marczewski relocated to California to focus on her treatment — and, when possible, her music.

By the time her “Golden Buzzer” episode of American Idol aired in June 2021, Marczewski, then 30, had been performing for nearly a decade.

In the episode, Marczewski performed her original song “It’s OK,” inspired by her journey fighting cancer.

In a brief interview prior to her performance, Marczewski revealed to the judges and audience that she had cancer in her lungs, spine and liver and had been given a two percent chance of survival.

“It’s important that everyone knows I’m so much more than the bad things that happen to me,” she told judges Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum and Sofia Vergara.

The performance earned a standing ovation from the audience and judges; Cowell called her voice “stunning.”

“There have been some great singers this year, and I’m not going to give you a yes,” he told Marczewski, to her initial dismay. Then he added: “I’m going to give you something else,” and pushed the golden buzzer, which automatically advances a participant to the live shows. A shower of golden confetti rained down upon Marczewski, concluding the two-hour episode.

“I was so shocked at first — it seemed like he wasn’t going to put me through, and I was really disappointed at that,” Marczewski later told the Advocate. “And then there was a pause and he reached for the buzzer.”

“When confetti was falling, it was like that moment was the only moment that ever existed in the universe.”

In the months that followed, Marczewski and her music exploded in popularity. Fans flocked to her social media pages to follow her health journey. Though there were stretches of progress, Nighbirde withdrew from the competition in August to focus on her health; she succumbed to the disease on Feb. 19, 2022.

Her memorial service, held at Cornerstone March 4, was livestreamed on YouTube for viewers all over the world. It was full of testimonies from family and friends about the young singer’s humor and faith, both of which were recurring themes throughout the evening.

“If…our admiration for Jane stops at Jane, we'll be missing something very major, because Jane was a reflection of the Jesus that she loved,” Cornerstone lead pastor Todd Garman told the crowd. “The reason she was so magnetic, magnanimous, others-centered, servant hearted, intentional, was because she was imitating — imperfectly — the Jesus of the Scriptures.”

Marczewski’s legacy continues in her music and through The Nightbirde Foundation, a Granville-based organization that raises money to help women with breast cancer treatment.

The foundation was established as a result of a conversation between Jane and her eldest brother, Mitch, who vowed to help bring to fruition her dream of helping other women with breast cancer.

“Through this process, we partner with women through their whole cancer journey. Jane’s life was extended because of support and partnership from around the globe. We want to do the same with The Nightbirde Foundation,” the organization’s website states.

In the months following her death, America’s Got Talent paid tribute to the singer in multiple episodes, including a July 5 special that highlighted Simon Cowell’s top Golden Buzzer moments — with Nightbirde at the top.

In July, the Marczewski family posthumously released her single entitled “Fly,” which charted in over 10 countries, her team posted on Instagram.

"Not scared anymore, like I used to be," the lyrics state. "Open up my eyes, I'm seeing, I'm not only wishing, dreaming.

I will fly/I will fly/I will fly."

For more information about The Nightbirde Foundation, visit nightbirdefoundation.org.

This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Zanesville native Jane Marczewski, aka Nightbirde, earns fame on AGT