Jill Jackett, a beloved teacher and avid runner in Rochester, New York, was killed by a hit-and-run driver late last week, while out for her usual morning run near the University of Rochester’s campus. She was 38.

Jackett taught English, coached cross country, and directed school musicals at her alma mater, Wheatland-Chili High School in Scottsville, a village of 2,000 about 10 miles outside of Rochester.

“We have lost so much more than a great coach and teacher,” said Todd Grimes, the school’s athletic director. “We have lost an amazing person.”

She was also a popular fixture in the running community. Jackett won her hometown Rochester Marathon in 2007 (3:00:04) and 2008 (3:05:09), and last raced at the 2017 New York City Marathon, where her 3:21:23 finish would have qualified her for the Boston Marathon.

“We are a small school community of just 688 students, grades K-12,” said Jackie Finn, communications specialist for the Wheatland-Chili Central School District. “We all knew and loved Jill.

“She was dedicated to her students and her teaching,” Finn continued. “The talent she brought out in our students, during a decade as the director of the high school plays, was astounding, and the perseverance she taught students as the cross country coach will be a skill our students will remember forever.”

Before beginning her 10-year career at Wheatland-Chili, Jackett graduated from West Virginia University with a degree in vocal performance, and then earned her master’s degree in English education at St. John Fisher College in Rochester.

When not busy with school or spending time with her husband, Shawn, also a teacher, Jackett made a name for herself among area runners for her infectious personality, as well as for her strength as a marathoner and regular participation at local and regional races. She was a dedicated member of the Bagel Brunch Runners, a self-described informal running group, but one that convenes like clockwork every Saturday at 7:00 a.m., at the same bagel shop in Greece, New York, for a weekly long run.

“As a runner, she was intensely competitive, but in a quiet way,” said Russell Herman, a frequent training partner of Jackett’s on those early Saturday morning runs. “She’d never admit it, but whenever you ran with her, it was a hard run.”

As her friends, family, students, and training partners grapple with Jackett’s death, Rochester police say a 27-year-old man turned himself turned himself in as the driver in the crash. Jon Jamberdino of Chili, New York, appeared in court Monday morning, where he was charged with leaving the scene of an accident with injury resulting in death. He pleaded not guilty.

The defendant’s lawyer, Matt Parrinello, told The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle that Jamberdino suffers from mental health issues and learning disabilities, and that he is devastated by what happened.

Jackett’s friends continued to share memories of the running partner and educator they loved. “Running brings together a lot of different people from all sorts of backgrounds—teachers, truck drivers, office people—we might all have different beliefs but when we run together, none of that matters,” Herman said. “She immediately fit in as soon as she joined. She was just a tremendously good person.

“So many people are impacted by her death,” he continued. “If anything good comes out of it, it’s that a whole lot of people will carry on her legacy of truly living life to the fullest.”

Services for Jackett will be held on Wednesday in Mumford, New York.

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