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01/03/2018 07:30 AMRe-elected to the Board of Education (BOE) in November 2017, Lisa Geraci-Anastasio hopes to continue helping parents and children in the district, in any way she can. Even if someone asks a question while she’s grocery shopping, Lisa’s more than willing to help out.
She’s very happy to be back on the BOE, and hopeful that with new Superintendent of Schools Erica Forti in place, the coming years will be positive with good communication between the board and superintendent.
Lisa encourages community members to come to BOE meetings more often and share positive experiences or ideas when it comes to children in the schools, and not to just come out for the negative things.
“I really would want to find ways, whether it’s through the PTO/PTA or even just being a voice at the board meetings, to have our public be more aware and to come to our meetings,” she says.
Lisa is also the chair of the PTO/PTA subcommittee for the board, and has been involved with PTAs/PTOs in the past. She likes being a part of the team and sharing thoughts and ideas to get to a finished product; for her, the ultimate reward is seeing numbers from a fundraiser or a presentation for the particular school.
A social worker for many years, Lisa works with individuals who may be going through difficult situations, and says it’s an “amazing feeling” to be able to assist people to get the help they need. She’s currently a liaison in the Stamford, Bridgeport, and Norwalk region, and makes sure children with disabilities receive proper services.
“I still see the children and families, the homes, and it’s a sad view at times,” Lisa says, but added that the reward is making sure those children get the services they need.
It also ties into her role in the BOE. She says she wants to be a voice so families in town are aware of what’s available for their children, whether it’s services for mental health or the reduced lunch program at the schools.
As an elected official, she’s regularly approached by people asking her questions, but Lisa says she’s OK with that, and she wouldn’t have chosen to be a social worker or to be on the BOE if she didn’t want to take the extra time to talk to people. She recalled one occasion where a trip to Stop & Shop lasted for 2 ½ hours because people kept coming up to her.
She also regularly has a tent at the Fall Festival, as she makes jewelry in her spare time. Lisa says she does it more to socialize, to see families, and refer anyone to programs that she has knowledge of through her job if asked.
“Whatever I can bring to the table, I’ll do, and I can do it at that timeframe,” she says, “I do it more for being available and being visible.”
Another place someone might see Lisa as at the Chamber of Commerce’s annual tree lighting event where she volunteers her time. She says a local pastry shop donates cookies and frosting, the Chamber buys decorations for the cookies, and her role is to help kids through the decoration process. Even though it can be messy, it’s worth it for her.
“My hands are purple, but it’s alright because you get to see their faces and that’s what it’s about,” Lisa says.
A single mom of two daughters, Ava Rose and Addison Jo, Lisa says it can be difficult to balance everything. People always ask her how and why she does everything she does, and she says her answer is she does it for other families that have similar situations to hers who need a voice, and Lisa is looking to be that voice.
“In a nutshell, I do this because I care about our children and our families,” Lisa says.