Meet Jimeale! - Westport Moms

How old are your kids and how long have you lived in Westport? 5, 4, and 2; we moved to Fairfield in 2013.
What has been the most difficult age with your children to date? What helped you overcome the challenges at that time? I would say coming home with a newborn who had been in the NICU for weeks and having an almost 2 year old and another who just turned 3 at home. You just have to keep going; there is no choice. That is what mums do; we just keep going!
What is your favorite family activity to do in Westport or the surrounding towns? We love going to the Mystic Aquarium and having lunch up there. It is such a pretty town and the aquarium is wonderful and makes for a nice day trip!
What was your most memorable family vacation and why? We loved Jay Peak! Ski school was fun for the kids, it’s a great mountain, their indoor water park was very entertaining and there was something for us all to do with 3 very young and active kids!
What is the best white lie you have told your kids? The Elf is watching you and will report back to Santa- If he can see you, then you better be really good or no presents!
What is your proudest mommy moment? When my kids pull their toys and clothes without asking to be given to the Bridgeport Kids.
What’s your favorite app right now- for you- and for your kids? I am not that tech savvy!
What’s your can’t live without beauty product? La Mer Cleanser; it’s the only thing that actually gets all the grit out of my skin!
What’s your favorite restaurant in town for a family dinner? A night out with friends? Bonda in Fairfield; it’s a great local place with amazing food.
What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you? I read the last chapter in every book first!
If you had 24 hours to do whatever you wanted – what would you do? Grab my husband and kids and go skiing!
What is your most marked characteristic? Passionate activist for kids in need
What do you most value in your friends? Integrity & Kindness
What is your greatest regret? Being too caught up in work when living in NYC and not enjoying the city as I would like to now
What is one piece of advice you would pass along to other moms? Show your kids empathy, kindness & boundaries.
How did you end up where you are now in terms of your job, or whatever passion project it is you might be doing? I was a volunteer reader in a classroom in Bridgeport a few years ago and was struck how little they had. When I was helping with a test, a little boy didn’t have a pencil. When I asked the teacher, he shrugged his shoulders and said “there are no more.”  I had to then break a pencil into 2 and sharpen it to give another child a pencil.  It struck me then that I had to help these kids.  I had to campaign for them. Be a voice.  I have been campaigning for them ever since. I started a foundation Brighter Lives For Kids Foundation and we have been running various programs which include Backpack school supplies drives, a soccer program for 60 kids who have never played soccer, setting up a new library in 2 Bridgeport elementary schools so the kids could actually borrow a book, organizing and funding their first field trips, and running a toy drive over the holidays and providing turkeys over Thanksgiving! It is really a bit of everything.  The biggest project was allocating Westport / Weston/ Fairfield parents in the classrooms as “room parents”- they act as support for the teachers. They do everything from helping to secure items the class needs to helping a child with a pair of shoes or coming in to decorate cookies or for a craft project over Valentine’s.  The list keeps going 🙂
 

Join The Westport Moms Community

Stay up-to-date with what is happening in-and-around The Westport, CT community with local events, community highlights, and exclusive deals.