How would you describe your occupation? I’m an attorney. I practice in the areas of estate planning, elder law, and probate.

Who is in your family? My husband, Vinny; and my daughter, Eloise. She is 19 months old.

Do you have any pets? I have a dog and a cat, Luna and Stella. They keep us just as busy as the baby.

How long have you lived in Newtown? We moved here in 2020 from Trumbull, and have been in Connecticut for 15-ish years. My husband and I are both from New Jersey originally.

What do you like to do in your free time? I really enjoy gardening. I’m trying to get a little homestead garden going where we could be kind of self-sufficient — that’s my goal. My husband built me a nice, big garden right when I had my baby so that when I was home that summer, I had something to do.

What is your favorite book? My job is very reading-heavy, so in my downtime, I don’t really read for fun. Most of the time when I’m reading, I’m reading to my daughter, so we’re reading a lot of Little Blue Truck.

Are you part of any organizations in town? I was part of the Commission on Aging for a while and recently stepped down from that. I do volunteer speaking engagements at the Newtown Senior Center, and teach adult education through Newtown Adult Education. I’m looking for another way to volunteer for seniors in town. Coming in during COVID stifled that a bit, and now I’m ready to get out there.

Who or what has been the greatest influence on your life? My husband and daughter really influence me. My husband is such a motivated person and keeps me motivated as well. Having our daughter helped gear our lives in a different way, too. She’s been so inspirational to me, changing my life for the better and in ways I can’t totally explain.

What is your favorite musical artist? Mumford and Sons. I’ve seen them live twice.

What’s the greatest piece of advice you’ve ever been given? “Everything happens for a reason.” I’ve gone through a lot of different ups and downs in the recent years of my life, but I realized it all happened to bring me here. I am closer to my home, my family, and working for people that I really enjoy working with and for at Hoekenga, Machado, & Lyon. Things in life happen, but it’s for a reason, and I just have to figure out that reason. My mom has always said that to me, and I really live by that.

What is something you cannot live without? Ice cream — if we’re going very base level. But, my family. I really rely on them for daily support in life. Both of those things together are just perfect.

What is your proudest accomplishment? Graduating from law school. I wasn’t ever a valedictorian, top-of-my class type of person. I was a work-hard type of student, and it really took a lot of effort and work to get there. Passing the bar exam after that was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I’d say maybe giving birth is my other proudest accomplishment. It was so hard in a totally different way, and I had a really difficult experience with that too.

What is your favorite travel destination? Florence. I studied abroad there and I’ve been back since. It’s just such a beautiful city and the culture is amazing, the food’s amazing, the wine’s amazing. You really can’t beat it.

What do you think is the best part of Newtown? I’d say how family-oriented it is. It has great schools and a really great community for parents and moms, especially. I’m in a few facebook groups where you can just feel the support. I had my daughter when there was no formula in the stores, and my neighbors were all sharing. I think that community feeling Newtown has is really my favorite part.