This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
12/07/2016 07:30 AMAs a lifelong East Haven resident, Joe Santino loves his hometown. He was born and raised in East Haven and now gives back to his beloved community in many ways. Joe has been on the Town Council for more than six years and had also been organizing the annual Secret Santa Raffle at the East Haven Tree Lighting during that timeframe, too.
“I don’t expect any recognition for the stuff I do—if you can’t do it from your heart, don’t do it,” says Joe. “I was born and raised here, I raised my kids here, and my grandkids are being raised here. It’s a great town.”
Joe and his wife Tracy have been married for 35 years and have three children, Joseph, Erika, and Brittany. The couple now has nine grandchildren with twins born just last week. Joseph and his family, including the new twins, live in North Haven and Joe’s daughters live in East Haven.
Ever since he was young, Joe has enjoyed the tree lighting, especially when he and Tracy were raising their family. Now that his children are grown, Joe still enjoys the event and his daughters both help in the endeavor of giving back through the Secret Santa Raffle. Last year they dressed up as Mickey and Minnie to visit with the children.
“I’ve always went to the tree lighting and now it’s about giving,” says Joe. “Especially with the times we’re going through now when money is tight, it’s something I can do for the family.”
Joe makes sure that every year the raffle includes several bikes as well as gift cards. Every child who visits Santa at the tree lighting can fill out a raffle ticket for free. He has several friends who donate to the effort each year and donations earmarked for the Secret Santa Raffle are also made to Town Hall.
With the donations, Joe visits Walmart to choose bikes and gift cards. This year, six bikes and 20 gift cards were raffled to East Haven families. If there are leftover gift cards, they are donated to East Haven Community Services to be distributed to those in need.
“I just love seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces when they win,” says Joe. “When they win a bike or even a gift card, they are so happy.”
This isn’t the first time that Joe has been involved with the tree lighting. He spent many years working for the Public Works Department and knows the efforts that go into putting on the tree lighting. He is happy that the raffle helps attract even more residents to enjoy the event.
“The tree lighting has come a long way and public works does a good job on the tree. It’s absolutely beautiful,” says Joe. “When they see you could win a bike or a gift card, it gets more people to come down and builds up the crowd.”
Joe also enjoys helping East Haven residents as a member of the Town Council. When he retired from his job with the town, he found he had more time on his hands and still wanted to be involved in the town.
He not only enjoys being able to help the residents, but also maintain his connections with his former co-workers, department heads, and other people who work in Town Hall. Joe has found that he has been able to make a bigger impact as an elected official than as just a resident.
“I live on the shoreline and it’s all about helping the people on the shoreline,” says Joe. “The mayor calls me ‘the Mayor of Momauguin’ and I just enjoy doing it.”
After the hurricanes, Joe found there was a lot of work to be redone, but was happy he was able to help his neighbors and that the Cosey Beach area is “just beautiful now.”
Joe plans to stay involved in the Town Council as long as he’s able to make a difference. He makes a point to visit Town Hall almost every day and to also stop to talk to residents in the area. As a member of the Town Council, he also attends meetings and budget workshops.
“I’m always trying see what’s going on, to be informed and I talk to the people and residents about issues and help them to correct it,” says Joe. “I’m a Democrat on the Town Council under a Republican administration, but we work hand in hand and the town has been great.”
On the weekends, Joe enjoys attending flea markets and tag sales and will spend the entire day scouring the shoreline for treasures. He also spends time with his family, watching his grandkids play football and baseball and going to dance recitals. They also enjoy the many town events together, like the tree lighting, the Fall Festival, and more.
“It’s nice to go down and watch the games and enjoy the kids having fun,” says Joe. “All of the activities in town are beautiful. This is a great town. I was born and raised here, my kids were, and I’m still here. I love this town, spending time with family, and helping the people in the community.”