Neil Allan Tickner

TI Member Neil Tickner, husband of Rachel Tickner and father of Jonathan, died early on the morning of March 18, 2022, 15 Adar II. He was 70 and died after a long illness. He is also survived by his sister Cecile Greenberg; same-age “three Musketeers” cousins Stephen Kasloff and Norman Abrams; cousins Jennifer Lipman-Bartel, Martha Lipman, and Roy (Faith) Stander; mother-in-law Jessica Friedlander; brother-in-law David (Sheryl) Friedlander; nephews Noah and Rafael; and other cousins and friends.

The funeral will be at Roosevelt Memorial Park, 2701 Old Lincoln Highway, Trevose, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, March 20, at 1pm. To participate by Zoom for the Funeral please use the following information.

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89846222784

Meeting ID: 898 4622 2784

Dial in: 301 715 8592 (Washington DC)

Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kdSa4DakCG

After returning from Pennsylvania, the family will receive guests between 7 and 9pm on Tuesday through Thursday nights, March 22 - 24, 2022. at the home of Rachel's brother and sister-in-law, David & Sheryl Friedlander, 11105 Jolly Way, Kensington, Maryland. Shiva minyanim will be at 7:30pm in person and on Zoom. To get the Zoom link so you can attend a minyan, to sign up in advance please go to https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScO9jEN8TUg4OtwnXLasSKyawzGbPkm2W0N2tHf4xf1tK1S6w/viewform. After you sign up, you will be sent the link by 6pm on the day of the minyan. If you wish to visit or attend a minyan in person, please go here to sign up and get additional information - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1m1BlLgWe00rHyuB5N6gwv9DqVMDg98xfPl8BUmBD4Y8/edit#gid=0.

Neil Tickner was born in Philadelphia in 1951. After graduating from Central High School in 1969 he earned a B.A. from Franklin & Marshall College and an M.A. from Temple University. He met Rachel in 1984 at the Hillel House for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. They married in 1988 at the Hillel House that served Washington University in St. Louis. Jonathan was born in Silver Spring, Maryland in 2000.

Neil spent over twenty-five years in public radio (at WILL in Champaign, Illinois, and WHYY in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and twenty years in media relations at the University of Maryland, College Park. His radio work included stories on a mid-western KKK meeting and cross-burning, neighborhood renewal in North Philadelphia, an aural re-creation of the original radio news coverage of the Pearl Harbor bombings, interviews with Holocaust survivors who endured the experiments of Dr. Mengele, and a series of open-to-the-public programs on astronomy at the Franklin Institute. He also spent several years at WHYY as the local host for NPR’s morning news program “Morning Edition.” Neil also nurtured younger journalism colleagues and generously shared his editing skills with friends. His work was recognized by numerous professional awards.

At the University of Maryland, College Park, Neil first facilitated media communications with faculty subject experts and lent his indefatigable, genial presence to his department's booth at the university’s annual open house. Later, as Speechwriter/Assistant to the University President, Neil wrote op-ed pieces, recognized faculty and staff accomplishments, and collaborated on the university’s annual report to the state legislature.

Neil retired in January 2021. Despite declining health he continued his interest in reading about Jewish history, especially that of the Hasidim, until his death in 2022.

May the family be comforted and his memory be a blessing.

To make a memorial contribution to Tifereth Israel, click go here - https://tiferethdc.shulcloud.com/donate-or-make-payments.html.