Rooney ‘puts his heart into everything he does’

To the Editor,

My name is Carly Sulik and I am a lifelong resident of Monroe. I was raised in this town and after graduating college and fulfilling my own career, I purchased a home in Monroe with my husband who is a business owner in town. Throughout my years in Monroe I have met and known many different people of this wonderful town with many years of volunteering in different organizations. One of my favorite organizations to volunteer for is the Fighting Angels Foundation, where I volunteered with Terry Rooney year after year.

For those that don’t know what the Fighting Angels Foundation is, it is a charitable organization dedicated to support and fund the research and raise awareness of a rare neuro-genetic disorder called Angelman Syndrome.

A very close friend of Terry Rooney had a child born with this disorder and started this organization with the help of family and friends spreading awareness. Terry did everything he could for this organization during our years volunteering to help his close friend and his family.

Terry performed multiple tasks from finding volunteers for the organization’s events, to planning and organizing, and gather sponsors to ensure each event ran smoothly and efficiently. This organization donated finances to UConn for medical research and personal mobile chairs for children that had difficulty walking.

Another organization Terry and I volunteered for together was the Friends of Jimmy Miller Foundation. This foundation raised money for youth in New Haven county. Terry helped this organization supply children with playgrounds, computers, work programs and Christmas presents.

Friends of Jimmy Miller also donated to Yale New Haven Hospital’s children cancer research, The Boy and Girls Club, St. Francis Home, and Clifford Beers in New Haven to name a few.

Year after year people continued to show their support for these organizations and I think that was a true testament to the type of person Terry and his family are. From the day I met Terry I was able to see how everyone he met made feel like family, whether you have known him for 10 years or 10 minutes.

You can see Terry takes any task he is given with love and dedication, whether it is large or small. He puts his heart into everything he does and I have confidence he will do the same in the role as first selectman of Monroe.

Thank you for your time,

Carly Sulik

Monroe resident