Those Who Do...
Annie & Sal Tomasello
A
nnie and Sal Tomasello are well-known personalities
in Gilroy. The are often seen enjoying retirement and
helping out with a variety of causes.
Annie and Sal have been on the local education scene for a
long time. Together they have more than 75 years of educational
experience. Annie began her career as a bilingual aide and
went on to hold a variety of positions in programs for at-risk
students, crisis response, and for five years overseeing the First
Five program of the Gilroy Unified School District. Sal started
out teaching, coaching and serving as principal at the secondary
school level and went on to become a director at the district
level. Along the way they had two children, Mark and Melissa.
Annie was born in Gilroy while Sal was born in San
Francisco and moved to Gilroy in 1959. They have known each
other since 7 th grade catechism class at St Mary’s, began dating
in their junior year of high school, and got married in 1969.
In their household two things dominate...family and education.
Today in retirement they continue their strong commitment
to education. As founding members of the Latino Family
Fund de Gilroy, one of the donor-directed funds of the
Gilroy Foundation, they are very involved in the Youth in
Philanthropy and Leadership Program.
The Latino Family Fund (LFF) currently has over $100,000
in assets and has distributed over $25,000 in grants since its
inception in 2006. Annie chairs the Committee that reviews the
grant proposals and recommends the awards. Sal has chaired
the annual Tequila Tasting fundraiser in May. The LFF has
attracted notice in the South County area and is experiencing
growth in membership and assets. Last year the LFF was
honored by Community Agency for Resources Advocacy and
Services (CARAS) with the Community Champions Award and
by the YMCA of Silicon Valley‘s Project Cornerstone Initiative
with the Community Values Youth Award.
The Youth in Philanthropy (YIP) is currently active with
twenty-five students at both Solosano and South Valley Middle
Schools. Youth selected for the project are capable students
Written By Larry J. Mickartz
who show leadership potential. They attend training sessions
throughout the year. The LFF gives YIP grant money which the
students are to distribute. To date, the students have distributed
$7,000. The students assess needs, seek applications from local
non-profits, evaluate the proposals and select the recipients.
Several times in the last few years the students found more than
one worthy project and raised additional funds on their own
to fund a second grant. Plans are in place to expand the Youth
in Philanthropy and Leadership Program to Brownell Middle
School, as well as Gilroy and Christopher High Schools.
The second component of the YIP project is leadership.
The training sessions devote time to leadership qualities and
activities. Fifty YIP students recently traveled to Microsoft
Silicon Valley to understand Microsoft’s philanthropic activities.
Annie and Sal get really animated when they talk about the
potential and energy of this group of students. They are both
involved in the leadership training and mentoring activities
with the students.
Annie and Sal some how find the time to do more. Sal
is involved in a program to mentor and coach new school
administrators in Gilroy. He also sits on the Board of the Gilroy
Foundation. Annie is involved with the Youth Board and Grants
Committee of the Gilroy Foundation after previously serving
on the Board of Directors for six years. She also sits on the
Personnel Commission for the City of Gilroy, the Gilroy Hall
of Fame committee and was recently selected to the Board of
the Saint Louise Regional Hospital Foundation. In 2013 Annie
and Sal co-chaired the Gilroy Foundation “Day in the Country”
event, which raised $57,000.
Family is important to Annie and Sal. So much so that
Sundays are family pasta night at their home. The gathering
often brings kids, grandkids, in-laws, aunts, uncles, cousins and
friends. Their beautiful home is the “go to” place for grandkids,
family and friends.
Even in retirement, Annie and Sal are people who do!
Sal and Annie (left end)
with YIP middle school
students — Latino Family
Fund’s visit in December
2016 to Microsoft.
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2017
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