Meet the Team: Jill MacCorkle, Director of Development

Welcome Jill! We are so excited for Jill MacCorkle to join our team at the GPRF. Jill is a long-time member of our rowing community in the PNW, most recently as the Development and Alumni Relations Coordinator at Green Lake Crew, where her kids rowed and her husband, Sean, coached before becoming the president of the Green Lake Rowing Advisory Council.

How long have you been part of the GPRF? 

I just started this month (July 2022).

How does your position impact the GPRF?

I help people who share our vision figure out how to support us through financial gifts and volunteering. If you want to learn more about supporting our programs, please get in touch!

Where and when did you start rowing? 

I've been involved at Green Lake Crew for years as a parent, board member, and in a fundraising role for their boathouse campaign, and finally started rowing there myself a year ago.

What is your favourite memory of playing a sport or being on a team?

In my senior year of high school, we got a new cheerleading coach who dramatically raised the bar for us on what we were capable of athletically, giving us the gift of high expectations and the support to achieve them. More than that, she became a mentor to us on and off the field, the first coach I ever had in any sport who embraced that kind of role. It helped me know what to look for in a coach when my own kids started getting involved in sports.

Who inspires you the most in sports?

There are so many, but it's baseball season so I have to go with Edgar Martinez for his years of consistent hard work, how he always expresses gratitude for his teammates and family, his commitment to giving back to the community, and of course, The Double.

In life?

My husband Sean, who has taught me, an inveterate worrier, to trust that most things in life will work out, and to say yes when I'm being called to something, even if I can't see why yet.

What advice would you give to someone considering rowing for the first time?

I think rowing is easy to get started in at just about any age and any fitness level. Don't be afraid to be a beginner and embrace all the mistakes you'll make, that's how you'll learn. It's a beautiful sport that connects you to nature, yourself, and the people around you, and also will kick your butt if you want it to.

Do you have a favourite workout?

HIIT, dance, things with a lot of variety and preferably something that can be done outdoors. I get bored doing anything too repetitive.