True Arizona baseball fans can tell you exactly where they were the night the Diamondbacks won the World Series. Ask Lisa Geyser and you’ll get a very special story.
It was Nov. 4, 2001. Luis Gonzales had just driven in the winning run; fans were a bit stunned and a lot thrilled that the fledgling team had won it all. Lisa and the girlfriends she was watching the game with headed to a special VIP postgame celebration. So did Jeff Geyser, who had been watching the game with a group of his friends. And so they met.
Kismet, fate, beshert!
“Years later,” Lisa confides, “we were at a charity event and met Luis Gonzales. We had to thank him. If he hadn’t gotten that hit, Jeff and I might never have met!”
The Geysers were married in 2005 after Lisa, who is Latina, had undergone an Orthodox conversion to Judaism. “It was a long process,” she admits, “but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Jeff had gone to the Hebrew Academy for six years as a youngster, and the couple now splits its formal observance between Beth Joseph Congregation and Chabad of Phoenix, depending on the occasion.
“You don’t want to miss Simchat Torah at Chabad,” Jeff says with a grin.
The Geysers have two young boys: Alex, 7, is a student at Pardes Jewish Day School, and Jackson, 5, just graduated from the Chanen preschool at Congregation Beth Israel. Jackson will soon be joining his big brother at Pardes at its new location on the Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus in Scottsdale. “There was never any question in our minds about providing Jewish day school experiences for the boys,” Lisa says. “We knew that was the way we wanted to go.” Jeff adds, “We are very pleased with the education that Alex is getting at Pardes and are excited that Jackson will be starting there next year. Jill Kessler is a fantastic head of school who works with a great administration. Alex loves each of his teachers, who are wonderful educators and warm, caring people.”
The Geysers won the opportunity to appear on the cover of this issue of Arizona Jewish Life through a generous donation they made at the silent auction at Pardes’ spring fundraiser.
Jeff and Lisa are resolute in their desire to make living a Jewish life a comfortable, natural daily setting for their boys. They wanted to be certain that they instill Jewish values by “doing” as well as by “telling.” They just weren’t sure where they could give the boys an early start to “tikkun olam” (repairing the world). Lisa and her friend, Alex Sklar, who also has two boys at Chanen Preschool and Pardes Day School, talked about the frustrations they were feeling in trying to find volunteer activities they could participate in with the boys. Many organizations have minimum age requirements and don’t offer programs for younger children. So the two women decided to create a nonprofit to address this lack of opportunity.
They founded Families Giving Back, a nonprofit they incorporated in spring of 2012. Their tagline is Caring Kids for a Better Community. “We all want to raise caring and compassionate children. There just weren’t many chances for the kids to get involved in a hands-on way,” Lisa explains. Through FGB the Geyser and Sklar boys as well as many others in the community are getting firsthand experience in helping others. FGB has been sponsoring one or two events each month where families can participate together, with additional options listed on the FGB website (familiesgivingback.org). The mission of FGB is “To inspire and help families volunteer together; and by doing so, help raise compassionate, socially conscious children who understand the importance of giving to others.” The hope is also that if a child begins volunteer work early on, it will become a natural part of his/her being and become a way of life. They work with a number of nonprofits and are adding more on a regular basis. They already have provided services for Ronald McDonald House, Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Kivel Campus of Care, The Friendship Circle and more.
“Jackson started volunteering at about age 2,” Lisa proudly says. “It can be something as simple as coloring pictures on welcome bags we fill with goodies for the families at Ronald McDonald House, helping to stack up books to be delivered or helping to clean up a park site. The children never work more than an hour. We make sure to keep the experience a positive one for all involved.”
The website also has ideas for ways to volunteer from your own home, such as a Family Food Drive Tool Kit that can easily be downloaded from the site. “The whole concept is such a win-win,” Lisa says.
Lisa was recently named one of four women honored as Mom of the Year by Valle del Sol, a vital organization in the Latino community. Valle del Sol provides medical and behavioral health care, human services, community resources and leadership development. Each year the organization recognizes several women to receive this special acknowledgment. This year’s breakfast was May 9 at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Phoenix. “My whole family came in from Utah,” Lisa says. “It was a very special event for me.” Though family is paramount to them, Lisa and Jeff recognize the importance of “alone time.” “Saturday night is always date night,” Lisa says. “We really look forward to that grown-up time together.” And they have regularly indulged in staycations around the Valley as well. “When the boys were little, especially,” Jeff says, “it was important for us to spend a little time as a couple and also to get a good night’s sleep!”
The Four Seasons is one of their favorite getaway places. Jeff remarks, “The Four Seasons is a reasonably close drive, but it feels like we’ve really left town. The surroundings are beautiful, the staff is friendly and accommodating and the rooms are well-appointed and very comfortable. It’s a perfect place for a staycation.”
For family activities they look for a combination of educational and physical opportunities. Among their favorite family places are McCormick Ranch Railroad Park, Phoenix Zoo and the Phoenix Science Center. “Both the boys are quite artistic,” Lisa says, “so we’ve also spent a good deal of time at the Phoenix Art Museum.”
Jeff, who has a B.A. from Harvard and a J.D. from ASU School of Law, is a commercial developer by day, having cofounded Lawrence & Geyser with his friend, Spike Lawrence, in 1993. Jeff and Lisa are involved with many charitable organizations and have endowed the Geyser Family Scholarship at Arizona State, which provides financial aid to students from local high schools. When out-of-towners come to visit, Jeff says they enjoy taking them to Cave Creek, downtown Tempe and Scottsdale, and to the many pro and college sports events in the Valley.
And they’ll always have a special place in their heart for the Arizona Diamondbacks and that fateful 2001 World Series win!
