Celebration of life held for Jackie Finer

Jackie Finer was remembered as a pioneer for helping older adults who touched many lives in Lewes.

A celebration of life was held April 4 for the founder of the Greater Lewes Community Village, now known as Village Volunteers.

Family, friends and neighbors filled Children’s Beach House to pay their respects to Finer. 

“Jackie is the heart and soul of why we’re here today,” said Anna Moshier, Village Volunteers executive director. “We couldn’t have done it without her vision, passion and her ability to tell people to help her and be part of this village.”

Finer, 95, passed away Nov. 11, 2025.

She was a native of Baltimore, but lived the last 25 years of her life in Lewes, where she made many friends.

Tracy Mulvaney lived near Finer in Lewes’ Burton subdivision.

“When I first moved into the neighborhood, she called me and said, ‘Come over for tea and we’ll straighten out the world,’” Mulvaney said.

Mulvaney said she was one of Village Volunteers’ earliest volunteers, driving older adults around to appointments.

Jackie Sullivan, who retired as the first executive director of Village Volunteers in 2024, said Finer left a big impact on her.

“She will always be ‘Jackie No. 1.’ She used to say that the village only takes the best people, so you better be the best. I wasn’t, but it was OK anyway,” Sullivan said.

Trey Sunderland, one of Finer’s sons, said his mother influenced him to get into the field of geriatrics.

“She was a wonderful lady, multidimensional, not a highly educated person, but she showed the world how you can learn through experience. She got me involved in geriatrics, in loving art, and followed one of her passions by starting the Village Volunteers,” he said.