Occupation: I did banking until 1997 when I stopped working full time to spend more time with my children. Since then, I have been a freelance financial analyst for Chase Manhattan, working from my home. I also make and sell polymer clay jewelry, which I also started in 1997. I graduated from Fairfield High School and from Oberlin College in Ohio with an East Asian studies major. I lived in Taiwan for a year during college where I learned to speak Mandarin Chinese. I will be going back to Taiwan soon. I have not been back since I was there in 1978.  

How Long in Newtown: I have lived in Newtown for 15 years. In 1985 we bought a cottage and built a whole new house next to it and connected them. I grew up in Fairfield, and lived in East Norwalk and Ohio for five years each. We also lived in Switzerland for four months recently. After college I had a lot of adventures. I guess I was trying to find myself. I sailed around the world on a 70-foot cruiser as a crew member. It was one of the great adventures of my life. I learned how to sail and navigate. There were seven people on the boat for five months. The group dynamics were very interesting. We learned how to deal with difficulties and with a group. I also drove all over the United States for a year with a friend in a pickup truck, with two horses in a trailer, camping out. We started in Connecticut, then went to Florida and Texas, and wound up out west. At the same time I was sending out resumes, and was going in to interviews in banks, dressed in the one dress I had in the back of the truck. I found Newtown when I needed a place to keep my horses.

Biggest Change Seen in Town: Development. I’ve certainly noticed it as a horseback rider, with losing access to trails. On the other hand, I’ve met a lot of new and interesting people. I’ve also noticed a change in climate. I used to go cross-country skiing a lot. Now I hardly ever go.

Family: My husband, Peter, and I have been married for 18 years. We have two children. Our daughter, Elisa, 12, attends Newtown Middle School, and our son, Dana, 10, goes to Head O’ Meadow.

Pets: We have a coonhound, Shadow, who mostly sleeps in the driveway, and a one-eared cat named Vincent Van Buskirk. We also have two frogs we got as a kit for our son. They grew from eggs to tadpoles to frogs and live totally underwater in an aquarium. They are named Chet and Biff, after the best friends of the Hardy boys. We also have a new corn snake that escaped last week from its temporary container. We’re looking for him. We think he might be in the basement near the furnace.

Hobbies: Horseback riding, running, skiing, and backpacking. I like to travel. I went to Vietnam with my dad, and to a wedding in Iceland.

Favorite Books and Authors: I read pretty much everything, but especially historical fiction. I recently read two books about Guernsey Island, The Book of Ebenezer LePage by G.B. Edwards, a fictionalized memoir of a man who lived his whole life on Guernsey Island. He talks about changes in his life and about the island. Guernsey was the only British territory occupied by the Germans during World War II. There was a shortage of food and a lot of fraternization with the enemy. While I was in England recently, I found the book Island Madness by Tim Binding, about the Nazi occupation of Guernsey. It was really a good book. My favorite book is Endurance by Alfred Lansing about the Antarctic trip of Ernest Schackleton, an explorer, in 1915. The boat was trapped in ice and eventually crushed. It took the men two years to get back to civilization, but no men were lost. It was the true story of what happened. It was an incredible story.

Favorite TV Show: Malcolm in the Middle. I watch it with my kids. I also enjoy anything with animals, such as Animal Planet, and Discovery.

Organizations: I have been a Girl Scout leader for five years. I love doing that. I take the girls camping and on trips to Boston. I also am a member of the National Polymer Clay Guild, Southern Connecticut Polymer Clay Guild, and Ridgefield Guild of Artists. I am also a member of the Brookfield Craft Center, and will be teaching a course there in the spring.

Most Vivid Memory of Newtown: In 1986 when we were building our house, there was a freak snow storm in late September. Our house had just been framed, and the whole thing was completely covered in snow and ice. The trees were also covered. It was a magical vision, but it all melted in a day.

 Favorite Vacation Spot: Big Lake, Me., in

northern Maine. It is not touristy at all. People go there to fish and relax. We wind surf on the lake, and the lake is so shallow that the water is perfect for swimming. There are loons and bald eagles. It’s pretty idyllic. The kids don’t miss TV at all.

Personal Philosophy: Be nice to other people. Be brave in all you do, and have fun. When an opportunity comes, you have to go for it.