Occupation: I’m a paraeducator at Middle Gate School. This January I’ll have been there for ten years. I started out in the reading department, for two or three years, and then there was an opening in kindergarten and I’ve been there since. I fill in wherever I’m need, though. Before kids, I worked in marketing at Pitney Bowes.

Family: I’ve been married to Reuben for 33 years. We met at WCSU, through mutual friends. We have a daughter, Alyssa, who graduated from Ithaca Colleg in 2014, with a music composition degree. She lives and works in Rochester, N.Y. Our son, Brandon, is a freshman at RIT, studying game design and development. It’s great having them both in Rochester.

Pets: None at the moment, but we always had cats, up until years ago. The kids also had hamsters, mice, goldfish, beta fish, and frogs over the years. I always told them, “Anything but snakes or spiders.”

How long have you lived here? I have been here since 1982, when we got married. I grew up in Bethel. Reuben grew up in Newtown, though. His family moved here in 1967.

What do you like to do in your free time? I do a lot of baking and cake decorating. I’ve been doing that since I was a teenager, making ice cream cakes at Carvel in Danbury. I do yoga a couple of times a week. I volunteer a lot, with Newtown Orchestra, WIN, and at NYFS. I was co-chair of the Festival of the Trees during the Holiday Festival for many years. I recently stepped down from that position, but I’m still coordinating musicians for the tea. It’s a fun and rewarding event. I also was a Girl Scout leader for 11 years. I do some reading, too.

What are you currently reading? I’m reading The Reluctant Tuscan by Phil Doran, who was a writer and producer for a lot of the old sit-coms. It’s a funny book that takes place in Tuscany, with great descriptions of the food, the countryside, and the people.

Do you have a favorite travel destination? Well, we hope to travel to Italy soon, with our best friends. We’ve been to Europe a couple of times, and traveled in three or four countries, before we had kids. Prague was interesting, and it was gorgeous. One of my grandfathers was from Czechoslovakia. My other favorite place is Hawaii. We went there for our 25th anniversary, and took the kids. It’s very clean, and calm, and the people are very friendly. Brandon loved that there were no bugs. In 2011, we took the whole family to Spain, and that was really fun.

Who has been the greatest influence in your life? My maternal grandparents, George and Lillian Patten. My grandmother was always baking and trying new recipes. I actually have her booklet with her handwritten recipes. I guess she inspired my love of baking. My grandfather had such a great sense of humor, and loved the outdoors. They did so much for me and my two brothers, growing up, and I miss them dearly.

If you could travel to the past or future, which would you pick? Probably the past. I prefer things very simple. Maybe the Colonial days; I know it was tough times, but I’m kind of a homebody, so I think making things by hand would appeal… but not churning butter.

Do you have a guilty pleasure? I love the combination of chocolate and raspberry — anything with those two flavors. Ferris Acres has a flavor with raspberry swirls and chocolate pieces that I love, and the ice cream place in Oxford has one, too. They’re really good. I’ve gotten fussy with my chocolate. I only like the good chocolate, and if I have a choice, it’s dark chocolate.