Mima Masaraova’s teenage and adult children have fond memories of attending Foster City Elementary School, with many of those occurring outside the classroom and, more precisely, on the corner of Edgewater and Beach Park boulevards.
The busy intersection is where they would talk about their day to the school’s crossing guard, Susie Ferrari, who has not only ushered children across the street before and after school for nearly two decades, but is quick to lend a listening ear or crack a joke with students on their way to or from their homes.
“She remembers all the names of the kids, and she chats with them. They have a relationship with her as a person,” Masarova said. “At the time, I didn’t have a problem with my children walking alone to school because Susie was there. She makes sure she is the first one on the crosswalk before any child walks there. She is like a grandma to those kids.”
Ferrari travels about a half mile from her home to the school, spending most weekday mornings and afternoons at the intersection. Amanda Ely, a Foster City Elementary teacher and neighbor of Susie’s, realized she lived in the same apartment complex a few years after they both started their respective positions at the school. They soon sparked up a friendship.
“She feels like family. She loves my boys. When we’re out of town, she feeds the guinea pigs. She gives the kids gifts for their birthdays,” she said.
Ely has also taken note of Susie’s car over the years, a 1993 Oldsmobile frequently in the shop. Susie told her she wasn’t even sure it would pass a smog test. That’s when Ely got the idea for a community fundraiser to get her a newer car and more reliable transportation.
“When I heard about it, I was just blessed and excited, and it was surreal to me. It was like watching it happen to someone else,” Ferrari said.
The 74-year-old is a longtime Foster City resident, but spent her childhood moving around the country as part of her father’s government job before settling in California. She held secretarial positions in several companies, including financial institutions and a military vehicle firm, before taking the job at the school, which she finds more rewarding.
“I love it so much because I have such a special bond and relationship with the children and the parents, because I see them every day,” she said. “It’s so rewarding for me to have such a relationship with them. They’re all so kind.”
During the height of COVID-19, Masarova, who has since developed a close friendship with Ferrari, would keep in contact with her, running errands or buying groceries for her to minimize public-facing encounters. She said Susie is one of the few older adults her grown children remain in touch with in Foster City.
“One of my daughters lives in London, and when she comes home to visit, she always brings something for Susie,” Masarova said.
After connecting with Ely, Masarova, along with Vice Mayor Stacy Jimenez, who also knows Susie, decided to raise money to buy her a more reliable car. The fundraiser took off, with about $12,500 of the stated $15,000 goal already met. Ely said there have been many donations from parents whose children haven’t even attended the school for years.
“I would get her a Rolls Royce if I could,” Ely said. “She’s just a wonderful person.”
You can access the GoFundMe fundraiser below:
(1) comment
This is fantastic and how charity should work. The People make personal choices to help others, not the government forcing people to give through over zealous taxation.
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