Jill is one of those rare people who knew very early in life what she wanted to be when she grew up. How could she not? Her entire childhood led her in the direction of nursing, starting with being the older (and only) sister of three boys and continuing with being mesmerized by her aunt’s narratives about caring for patients as a nurse.
The diagnosis and eventual death from brain cancer of a close friend solidified Jill’s desire to help people. She recalls the numerous discussions with her friend as he talked about his treatment and the impact of nurses — both good and bad — on his life. She witnessed firsthand the challenges that he had to endure always without complaint but with an insight that only someone in his position could have.
A lesson that Jill learned while talking to the father of kids she babysat was to be a listener. He told her that she would always learn something from listening but nothing from talking. She would understand the perspective of others and know where they are coming from. Jill incorporated that lesson into not only her career but also her life in general. The ability to listen and the ability and desire to help people “just because that was the right thing to do” proved winning combinations for Jill as she navigated nursing school and her early years of being an operating room nurse.
While in her home state of Connecticut, Jill met and married Bruce, a fellow nurse. They moved to Virginia so they could return to school, work at a bigger hospital, and, last but not least, live in a warmer climate. Jill’s career grew as she moved from the operating room to orthopedics and neurosurgery and to working in quality and safety before moving into human resources as an employee relations coordinator. In the latter position, Jill learned one of the most humbling lessons in her life when a colleague emotionally pointed out that everyone does not have the same experiences in a place of employment. Some have to work harder and endure subtle and overt forms of bias simply because they were placed in the “other” category. Jill silently vowed that she would learn everything she could from this experience and she would ask more questions to fight harder for fairness for everyone.
Jill’s passion and desire to help extends beyond people to four-legged creatures, especially dogs. After she got married, Jill and Bruce started bringing home two-to-three shelter dogs at a time. She took classes on how to train dogs and teach them tricks. Today, she volunteers two-to-three days a week at an animal shelter.
Even Jill’s favorite hobby—biking— involves volunteer work. She’s a member of Richmond Area Bicycling Association (RABA) and tries to ride at least 2,000 miles a year. This year, because of other commitments, including a new shelter puppy, she is “down” to 1,200 miles. She participates in RABA’s annual November Bike Build and helps assemble bikes to donate to area Christmas Mothers to give to less fortunate kids.
Jill got involved with New Kent Democrats following the elections in 2024, knowing that she had to do something and needing to find a group of like- minded people. Since then, she has become an active participant in our committee, routinely volunteering to write postcards, deliver flyers door to door, attend and support social events, and fill in whenever and wherever she is needed. She has become our representative for the Little Free Pantry and makes sure that all food donations are on the shelves for our neighbors in need.
Although Jill is most comfortable in the background, she deserves to be noticed and honored for her many contributions to human- and animal-kind. She mentioned that she wanted her legacy to be “that she tried.” It will be that and much, much more.