I’ve had the pleasure of serving as one of Jillian’s direct supervisors at her jobs at UF RecSports. I thought it might be nice to share a little bit about her work here with us and what she has meant to our team.
I worked directly with Jillian in her role as a Campus Recreation Manager (RM), the highest level student leadership position that we offer. Jillian applied for this promotion last year as an opportunity to work with all of the different units within our department. During the interview process, I can specifically remember Jillian explaining that the number one thing that drew her to this job was the opportunity to make sure students in all of our different staff positions felt included and felt they belonged. For example, as a student working in one of our smaller spaces, like the pool or our other outdoor recreation spaces, it’s easy to feel like you are out on an island, and not a part of the group. Ever since Jillian was hired, this is the top feedback I receive about her- that she always takes the time to check in on every staff group, every facility, and make sure they know she is there for support. She has also gone out of her way to make sure those individuals are included or invited to things that happen outside of work.
Our team of RMs is quite small compared to some of our other RecSports teams with hundreds of staff members. Because there are only 8 of them, they are a tight-knit group. Our group immediately came together after hearing the news- we laughed, we cried, we shared our favorite stories or memories with Jillian, and we discussed ways we felt we could honor her moving forward. We all want to prioritize keeping her memory at the forefront and make sure her legacy is honored in the way she so deserves. Credit to the RM team for being the brains behind our ideas, but here are some of ways we are honoring her:
• First, our RM team agreed unanimously that we wanted to honor her as our 2024-2025 RM of the Year, one of the highest awards we give at our annual Student Staff Banquet (more commonly known as the “RECSPYs”). This will also ensure we are provided with a few moments to further honor her legacy at the event itself. The RM team also requested that we leave a chair open at their table for her, and we will make sure that happens.
• We are also looking at creating a small sticker that our staff can put on their nametags to remind them to keep the joy of Jillian with them on shift.
• We also developed a slide with photos of Jillian working each of her different positions within RecSports. This now circulates on the TVs in our different facilities. Our staff have loved seeing this up during their shifts. (That photo is below)
Again, I just thought it might be nice to share specifically about the impact she has undoubtedly made here at UF. I’ll always cherish the memories I have with Jillian. I’ll always remember the energy she brought, the joy she radiated, and her desire to make every person feel seen and heard. Jillian has left an incredible legacy and I know we are all better for having known her. She will always be a part of our UF RecSports family!
