Community
The things I do outside of work that keep me grounded in what actually matters.
Ardsley-Secor Volunteer Ambulance Corps
EMT — Ardsley-Secor Volunteer Ambulance Corps
I’m a New York State certified EMT-B and have been volunteering with ASVAC since May 2024. I serve on a crew — sometimes as lead tech, sometimes in support, depending on the call.
This important work is equal parts humbling and motivating, and I never regret going on a call. Every 911 response is a reminder that there is always more to learn, and that the people beside you matter more than any individual skill.
These lessons travel. They’ve changed how I think about teams, about trust, and about what it means to show up for people under pressure.
See if you can spot me in the ASVAC promo video!
LEGOLAND New York — Certified Autism Center, 2023
Autism Awareness & Inclusion
My son Juan was born in July 2012. Our daughter Ava followed in 2015. When Juan was around two and a half, some relatives — seeing him every few months rather than every day — noticed something we had slowly stopped seeing: he wasn’t making eye contact, seemed distant, and wasn’t talking as much as expected. A diagnosis for Autism Spectrum Disorder followed, along with a wave of questions we weren’t ready for.
Was he very different? What should we expect? Would we have noticed sooner if we’d been paying closer attention? Was it something we did? In time, we found some answers — mostly through Perla’s relentless research, finding the right school district, and building a support network that included family, friends, and educators who genuinely understood what our family needed.
Our son has flourished in ways that would have seemed impossible to predict at the start. He loves learning, responds deeply to praise, builds massive Lego sets, and plays videogames with total commitment. He may perceive the world differently than most — but you can tell he feels proud of his own accomplishments. He should. The kid works hard.
In 2023, our family was invited to participate in a feature when LEGOLAND New York became a Certified Autism Center — talking about what practical accommodations actually mean for families, and what it looks like when an organization takes inclusion seriously rather than just labeling it.
I also helped co-found the Ardsley Special Education PTA (SEPTA) and served as its Charter Co-President. SEPTA supports families of children with special needs in the district and advocates for students and educators alike.
We are in this community now. Our hope is that — once it’s all said and done — we can leave it with greater awareness and a richer knowledge base for the parents who are just starting their journey.
Watch my family and I in the LEGOLAND featureService is not separate from leadership — it’s where leadership gets tested. The EMT crew that has your back at 2am, the parent at a school board meeting fighting for their kid, the colleague who stays in the room when things get difficult. These are the things that build the instincts that matter.