If you live in Howard Beach, you probably know her. Rosemary Ciulla-Frisone is your typical grassroots leader - she does tons of community work, inspires others and survives on little sleep.Her latest civic involvement is the presidency of the Ronald Reagan Republican Club of Howard Beach, established in December 2007.
“In Howard Beach there’s a majority of Republicans, but we never had a Republican club,” Ciulla-Frisone explained.
“My ambition is to build and revitalize the Republican Party in Howard Beach,” she said.
Republican District Leader Eric Ulrich appointed Ciulla-Frisone, 48, to the Club’s presidency. “She works well with people and is able to organize things,” he said.
“She gets a good crowd at the meetings. She’s building a very strong foundation,” he explained.
Because of these, Ulrich considers Ciulla-Frisone “a rising star in politics,” somebody who has what it takes to run for office.
Ciulla-Frisone said she doesn’t rule out the possibility in the long run.
But for now, she wants to focus on her numerous civic duties, another one of which is her involvement with the Social Service Employees Union Local 371, which represents workers employed by New York City.
Ciulla-Frisone oversees the Union’s funds. She also helps with everything else that needs to be done. “No job is too small or too big for her,” said Faye Moore, President of the union. “She has tremendous energy. She’s like the force of nature,” Moore added.
Ciulla-Frisone’s relationship with the union started through membership. Five years ago, she turned to the union because she was being treated disrespectfully at her workplace, The Department of Transportation. The union sided with Ciulla-Frisone, educating her about her rights.
Out of gratitude, she joined the union’s staff. “I wanted to help other people. I wanted to do what was done for me,” she explained.
Ciulla-Frisone also sits on Community Board 10. In addition, she belongs to the Lefferts Liberty Kiwanis, a charity club dedicated to helping kids in the neighborhood.
Ciulla-Frisone said she does all this community work because she feels the need to be an advocate on behalf of the public. The need developed when she was in her 20s.
“I was just getting tired of how the city was being run. I figured I could make a difference,” Ciulla-Frisone explained.
