CyberFair 2000 Project
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Carpinteria, California, USA
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About This Site
Who Made This Site?
Why an Avocado Tree?
Project Narrative
Information Sources
Interview with Joanne Plumeri
By Claesen W. and Isaiah B.
1. My name is Joanne Plumeri.
2. I was born in Trenton New Jersey.
3. My father's name is Richard Samuel Victor Plumeri and my mother's name is Joan Ethel Bowden Plumeri.
4. I grew up in Robbinsville New Jersey, a small rural area in the country.
5. What I remember about the house I grew up in is that it was on 3 acres of land with woods behind it. My cousins lived next door and I would spend every weekend with my cousin, trading weekends at each others house. My mother still lives there however the area around our home has been developed with large housing developments.
6. What I remember most about my childhood was our family vacations every summer to the beach, dancing lessons, and Christmas with all my cousins.
7. My background is Italian, Irish and English.
8.I am the oldest child in our family and have two younger sisters and one brother and one stepbrother.
9. My family background is as follows: My grandfather, on my dad's side, came from Palermo Sicily on a boat when he was a young boy. He met my grandmother whose family came from England and they were married in 1928. They had two children, my dad and 10 years later my Uncle Bob. My mother's father was Irish/English and owned a fine furniture store with his three brothers. I never knew my grandmother since she died when my mom was 7 years old.
The Italian influence was very dominant in our family and in my upbringing. To this day we still celebrate holidays and homecomings with Italian cuisine and storytelling.
10. These relatives have lived here for almost 100 years.
11.On my dad's side, my Italian grandpop worked in a rubber factory for 10 years and then as a milkman for 20 before he retired. My grandmom was a professional seamstress. My moms' dad ran the furniture store for as long as I can remember.
12. The person that influenced me the most as a leader in the community was my dad. He has a Masters Degree in Education, taught for 5 years and then opened a very successful Real Estate business of which he just sold and retired from last November.
13. I have college degree, a BA, in Art Education and was a teacher at Carpinteria High School for 10 years. I am now the Education Coordinator at Cox Communications for the past 9 years. I have had the opportunity to grow both professionally and personally in my position and develop my job as the telecommunications industry grows and expands. I have the opportunity to work closely with the educational community and maintain those relationships as an Ambassador for Cox.
Cox Communications, 22 S. Fairview Ave, Goleta, CA 93117, 805-683-7751 x3126.
Activities that I am currently involved in include:
- The JASON Project
- Cox Multimedia Academy
- "Cox Line To Learning" (educational TV programs for the community)
- High Speed Internet access for our local schools and districts
- Maintain Adopt-A-School Partnerships
The path I took to become a leader was through building relationships in the community. I went through a "Leadership" program when I changed careers.
What "Civic Leadership" means to me is investing, supporting and maintaining relationships with individuals, groups, and the needs of the community.
My contribution to the community is mostly in the area of education. As a representative for Cox, I have contributed by training teachers, students and parents how to make healthy TV viewing choices, provide technical and TV production support, and special public relations events such as the C-SPAN School Bus.
Changes that have occurred for me as a result of becoming a leader are self- confidence, healthy relationships, and many new learning opportunities.
I have been a community leader since I began my career at Carpinteria High School in 1981.
One unusual thing that happened to me was a kind of cool thing. I had an opportunity to ride in the Family Channel blimp in 1994 as part of an educational project with Cox and the community.
You can email Joanne at joanne.plumeri@cox.com
This page was written by Claesen W.
This page was edited by Isaiah B.
This page was photographed by Claesen W.
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