“I”s on the World: Illini in Israel

Abra and Geoffrey Hiller and their daughter, future Illini Julianna, show some school spirit while visiting family in the Middle East. (Image courtesy of Val (Zev) Siegel)

Abra (Siegel) Hiller, ’85 BUS, and her husband, Geoffrey Hiller, ’78 BUS, traveled to Ein Gedi, Israel—an oasis located west of the Dead Sea—in May 2014 to introduce their then 15-month-old daughter, Julianna Hiller, to her uncle, Val (Zev) Siegel, who lives in nearby Ma’ale Adumim. Julianna is already prepared for an orange-and-blue future—her cousin Lauren Evans, ’15 AHS, gave her Illini-themed socks when she was born. “So Julianna has been ready to walk in her parents’, uncle’s and cousin’s UI footsteps from birth,” her mother says.