COMMUNITY
P2G DIRECTOR AND SHLICHIM HOST MOM RETIRES By Savannah Feustel, Jewish Federation & Foundation of Northeast Florida
To say Jill Abel has devoted her focus to Northeast Florida’s Jewish community is an understatement. With her cheery disposition and drive for connection, Jill has dedicated her personal and professional life to the local and global Jewish community. Sadly, she’ll be retiring from her dual positions as Partnership2Gether (P2G) Director and its Domestic Consortium Coordinator at the end of the month. Originally from Richmond, Virginia, Jill has lived in Jacksonville with her family for the past 26 years. When she first moved to the area, Jill taught junior kindergarten at the Jewish Community Alliance’s Gan Yeladim Preschool. She found her true calling in 2012 when she dedicated her career to Partnership2Gether.
P2G is an opportunity for members of the Northeast Florida Jewish community to make people-to-people connections with Israelis living in our partnership city of Hadera-Eiron, Israel. Through her position at P2G, Jill has been able to work with teenagers and young adults within both communities. Jill says, “Witnessing the
connections form between the American and Israeli teens was really special. I loved watching as they learned more about each other and grew from being groups of Americans and
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Israelis into just one large group of young Jewish people.”
In addition to making connections within both areas, she has been a “host mom'' to our Israeli shlichim (emissaries). As a mother of “two twenty-somethings,” Jill enjoys welcoming and mentoring them throughout their stay. “I don’t even consider it work at all.”
When asked about her involvement with the Jewish community outside of work, Jill spoke about how interconnected she and her entire family is with Israel. “We became connected to Israel and to the Israel Partnership because, well before I took this job, we traveled on a Federation Family Mission and then hosted Israeli teens in the summers. Both of my children were impacted by these experiences and grew to understand and love Israel in a very special way.” Married to her husband Mike of 30 years, their daughter Hannah is a speech pathologist in Northern Virginia and their son Aaron is an officer in the K'shrei Chutz Unit of the Israel Defense Forces after making Aliyah.
Jewish Federation & Foundation of Northeast Florida Executive Director
Alan Margolies expressed his thanks, “Both for Jacksonville’s Jewish community and for the other nine communities that make up our Southeast consortium, Jill has enhanced the connections and the relationships that we share with the people who live in Hadera-Eiron. Our partnership is all about a living bridge reflecting these friendships and that’s what Jill is all about.” We are so thankful for the dedication and hard work Jill has given to our Northeast Florida Jewish community and our sister community of HaderaEiron. We wish her well as she continues her journey!
