Local student receives 2021 Peter Chortek Leadership Award

Rancho Santa Fe resident Abigail Holman has been awarded $5,400 as a recipient of the 2021 Peter Chortek Leadership Award (PCLA), an annual award facilitated by the Jewish Community Foundation of San Diego (JCF).

Award winner Abigail Holman

(James Kecskes

)

Abigail is an incoming senior at La Jolla Country Day School and the current president of Serving Spoons, a nonprofit organization that prepares and delivers healthy meals to families in need. Abigail assumed the leadership role in July of 2018, and has poured herself into the organization, increasing the number of people they help from 17 to 32 people, in 10 different families, each month. Abigail combines her love of cooking with her passion for community service to help those who suffer from food insecurity. Abigail believes that the best part is not just serving others, it is getting to talk the people she is helping and learn more about them.

The Peter Chortek Leadership Award was established by the Chortek family in 2011 to foster Jewish communal involvement in honor of the late Peter Chortek. Chortek was not religious but was fiercely proud of being Jewish and committed to making a difference. His passion and focus was Jewish education, believing quality Jewish education would help ensure a vibrant Jewish future. A total of 25 awards have been presented to date recognizing Jewish teens who are practicing Tikkun Olam, repairing the world.

Peter Chortek Leadership Award recipients receive a $5,400 stipend, $540 to establish a donor advised fund at the Jewish Community Foundation and a professional video made about their project.

The four other 2021 recipients of the Peter Chortek Leadership Award are twins Lola and Sophie Bulkin, Ashley Cohen, and Natalie Goldwasser. All recipients have a passion for making a difference in the community, inspiring their peers to also get involved in service projects or social justice programs. The awards were presented recently at a celebratory brunch for recipients and their families. The awards committee is comprised of members of the Chortek family and other community leaders.

Videos of all Peter Chortek Leadership Award winners can be viewed at youtube.com/user/

jcfsandiego/videos. For additional information on the Peter Chortek Leadership Award, visit the Jewish Community Foundation of San Diego website at jcfsandiego.org/pcla. For more information, visit jcfsandiego.org or call (858) 279-2740.