60 Years Of Me!
I was born in Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip. As you can see, I didn’t travel too far away. I currently live around the corner.
Growing up, I always said I had a very normal childhood. Sixty years later as an adult, I can tell you, I did not. My childhood was far from normal, taking into consideration the current world we live in.
I grew up in Deer Park. It was my mom, dad, and my two brothers- Thomas and John. I had my own room in a beautiful high ranch, loving parents who constantly encouraged me, saying that I could do anything. We ate dinner as a family every night, always a home cooked meal including protein, vegetables and starch. Our home had a built-in pool in the yard and neighbors who looked out for us…who were really family. We played in the street, went house to house, and still to this day, have that connection.
While I am still blessed with my mom. My dad, brother and neighbors have passed. When I graduated from high school, my dad asked me, “So, what’s next?” I said I have no idea. He picked up a book from Farmingdale University and asked me what looked interesting. No pressure…no questions…find something you would love,
Horticultural it was! The thought of working as a florist appealed to me. I graduated and my dad said, “Work in a flower shop? Oh no! You should own one.”
I married my husband Joe at 21 years old and we built a wonderful life together, we expanded on to Joe’s family’s home and later purchased that home. Joe did landscape, when I met him and I had built out a flower shoppe without fear or reservations at 21 years old--- insane, right? I hired my still life-long friend Karolyn (who later became my business partner of 20 years). We established a beautiful culture. Working beside Karolyn, Ginny and my family who always helped out, I never really worked a day in my flower shop life.
I had two daughters Lauren and Larisa during my flower shoppe years. It gave me such flexibility that I was class mom, PTA president, soccer mom and the list goes on. My girls never really realized I worked. I was truly blessed! Don’t get me wrong, it was not a lot of money… but money wasn’t the focus.
Joe and I Raised two well-adjusted, smart, beautiful, talented girls who went on to graduate from college with master’s degrees while obtaining scholarships and playing Division I Soccer. They are awesome human beings always giving more than they take.
I retired into the mortgage industry which has now become a 20-year profession for me. I guess that’s where most of you reading this met me. I took a job part-time for health benefits from a friend Isabel who needed a loan officer assistant and like I always say, “How you do anything is how you do everything”. My strong work ethic and dedication to everything I do put me in the direction of seeking out one of the best people in the mortgage industry to learn from- my current partner and friend Dean Hartman who saw my business sense and potential right away. Not knowing the finance industry, I worked hard and studied fast and rose to the top of my profession and had the joy of helping thousands of clients accomplish homeownership.
During this time my brother Thomas passed away and gave me a different perspective on life. The loss of a sibling makes you see things from such a different perspective. You learn who is really important and who your true friends are. The people who step up and the people who don’t. For one of the first times in my life, I had turmoil. I was involved in a bad business move where we opened a branch and came across deceitful people which blindsided me. I never had people lie to me or hurt me and that bad business move to Benchmark Mortgage made me question more than business. I saw a side of bad character in people that I never knew existed. It took time to recover from that to where I found my current home of almost 10 years at Cliffco Mortgage. Working with Geralyn on a daily basis to grow our business.
My Nephew Brandon moved in with us from Florida and wanted to start a life in New York and we welcomed it. It’s nice to have the house full. My mom has her own space in our home. You see we move in a pack- a super close-knit family. I constantly try to keep us all together because family is everything…Sunday dinners, outside BBQ, soccer games you name it ..I helped my younger brother John and his family move back from Florida. My niece Kasey (who is my assistant) and our precious grandniece Camila who has added so much joy to our life.
My dream was to own a home on the water so in March of 2017 we moved from Deer Park to West Islip on the great South Bay, a huge scary financial move for me. My daughters both own homes which Joe and I helped get them into at very young ages and Lauren met Roland who she later married and blessed us with our first grandson Ryder and newly born Jax. The best gift your children can give you.
We all work together. Larisa and Lauren are loan officers and Joe is now a home inspector. We see each other daily and I never forget how blessed I am to have the life I have. I look out the window every day, as I drink my coffee and thank the good Lord for the here and now. Recently I had an upset in my life some health challenges. I will put everything I have. I am so blessed and still have so much to do.
My mom always said if you have one or two true friends in life you are a blessed person. I have that. I have given a lot to these 60 years,and am so very proud of what I have accomplished. To all my friends and family reading this please join me in celebrating my 60 years of life. Pray for me as I’m on this next chapter and, if nothing else, remember that family is everything.
Some quotes I have lived by:
“Show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are “
Lisa Zambelli 101- “people are who they are“
“People always have money for what they want to have money for.”
“A home can hold as many people as you want it to “
"Your smile is your best asset."
