April 8, 2011
Jon Abouaf, (pronounced AB-woff), his wife Denise, and their two children (their middle child Sam died at 3-months-old) have lived in Leonia for the past 18 years. Many of you know Jon from his countless hours overseeing every aspect of Leonia’s soccer programs. For the past 10 years, Jon has been the regional commissioner of AYSO (American Youth Soccer Organization) Region 3 A 1089. He is also president of Leonia Soccer Association. Denise is the registrar. Under Jon’s helm the program has grown from 350 kids to currently more than 800 participants. The AYSO Soccer Fair will be held today at the LMS Cafeteria from 1-6 p.m. and Saturday, April 9 from 1-4 p.m.
Q: What is your heritage?
A: My ancestors are Turkish Sephardic Jews. My great-grandfather was a rabbi in Turkey. I grew up in Plainview, Long Island.
Q: What is your day job?
A: After I graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business, I started my career with Peat Marwick (now KPMG) where I also met Denise. After 18 months, I left to join Met Life, where I have been for 25 years. I am currently an assistant VP where my group manages upwards of $20 billion in pension funds.
Q: As a pension manager, are there any stock/investment tips you can share with us?
A: I follow Peter Lynch’s advice: Pick what YOU like. Based on my kids and their friends’ overwhelming love of this snack food, I’d recommend Crumbs, the cupcake store that’s been springing up all over the New York metropolitan area. The rumor is that they may be going public soon. I do notice long lines in front of their stores; that seems like a promising sign.
Q: Growing up, what did you want to be?
A: Even though I was shy, (I know, people who know me may have a hard time believing that!) I loved sports and wanted to be a sportscaster or a sports reporter. I took a Dale Carnegie course after I graduated from college and got over my fears of public speaking.
Q: Did you play a sport in high school or college?
A: Other than intramural sports, no. My father was an overly critical guy about sports, always comparing me to the pros, telling me how they would have done it. Now that I’m a parent, I take pride that I’m the opposite – that I’m a “good” sports parent, supporting the kids in their wins and their losses.
Q: What professional athlete would you like to be?
A: Julius “Doctor J” Erving, who also grew up on Long Island and played basketball for the Nets. He was a cool, classy guy…a showman.
Q: Why did you choose Leonia?
A: It is an easy commute on the 166 Express bus for me to Midtown and for my wife downtown, when she worked there. We picked our house because it was a block from the bus, close to all schools, and it had high ceilings. I’m 6 foot 2.
Q: What is the best thing about Leonia?
A: For me, it’s Sylvan Park, Saturday morning at 8 a.m. during the soccer season, just me and my bottled water, checking out the fields, pulling out the flags and the goal posts, thinking about the day to come. Slowly the volunteer coaches and refs show up, followed by the players and parents, until the field is vibrant with color, energy and excitement.
Q: What’s your fantasy vacation?
A: With the kids, spending a week in Manhattan, visiting museums, ball games, Broadway shows and tourist sites. Without the kids, I’d like to return to the beaches of Portugal, where Denise and I spent our honeymoon, 21 years ago, on the island of Madeira.
Q: What’s something most people don’t know about you?
A: I collect cookbooks and culinary magazines. It’s no secret that I love to cook. We host a holiday party for all the AYSO board members and I cook everything from scratch. I also make a specialty drink from the Food and Wine Drink Book each year – this year it was Rick Bayliss’ champagne margaritas. I’m now experimenting with baking – holiday cookies and “ultimate chocolate chip cookies” for the high school bake sales. I hear they’re a big hit with the teachers and kids – the first to go.
Q: Do you have any pet projects or causes?
A: I used to organize blood drives. In 1997, when my son passed away from liver disease, organ donation became “my cause.” I got Met Life to do a series of Life Advice brochures on the topic. Now I help raise money on behalf of local ailing families, families in crisis, medical or otherwise.
Q: Any advice for young players?
A: I was a procrastinator as a child and a young adult. I now know that we can’t afford to waste any time, that life is precious, and what we get involved with, every day, matters.
Leonia Lives 