Elisabeth (Weinberg) Tavarez, From Finance to Higher Ed to Politics

 

163. Elisabeth Tavarez

SPEAKERS

Will Bachman, Elisabeth Tavarez

 

Will Bachman  00:02

Hello and welcome to The 92 report Conversations with members of the Harvard and Radcliffe class of 1992 I’m your host, Will Bachman, and I’m delighted to be here today with Elisabeth Tavares, who many of you may remember as Elisabeth Weinberg and Elisabeth has a husband who is David Tavares, who’s episode 108 of the show, and now we have Elisabeth. So Elisabeth, welcome to the show. Thank you very much. Great to be here. So Elisabeth, tell us about your journey since graduating tomorrow, we heard from your husband on episode 108, so tell us your journey.

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  00:42

Yeah, sure. So, yeah, I can’t believe how long the journey has been. That’s a little alarming, but, but yeah, you know, it’s, it’s, you know, I think everybody has their own journey, and you know, mine has been, you know, I think I would, I like to think of it as chapters in a book. And I think there’s been three main chapters. I spent some time in the private sector, some time in higher ed, and I’m currently in the in the government sector, in public service.

 

Will Bachman  01:17

Okay, well, walk us through the chapters of the book.

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  01:21

I will. I will. So, so, yeah, so, you know, after graduating from school, you know, I don’t, I don’t know that I had a real clear idea of what I wanted to do. I, I did want to do some travel. So I did do some of that. I, you know, took, took a trip to Egypt and Israel, which was super interesting. Actually met up with David, my husband, who was over in doing a internship in Egypt at the time. So, you know, that was a really spent about a month doing that, just, you know, traveling, and I got a couple of gigs, working, like on programs for American teenagers abroad. So I spent one summer in Ireland on a program, and one summer in Spain in a program, actually teaching Spanish to American teenagers. And so yeah, you know, since I hadn’t studied abroad during my years at Harvard, which, you know, was not that common, right, for, at least for you know, folks that that I knew, and I think it’s you know, probably become a lot more common. But back then, it wasn’t, you know, I really still had that bug for international travel and wanted to, you know, to do that. But, you know, you can’t, can’t do that forever. So I did. You were

 

Will Bachman  02:46

teaching Spanish now, yeah, when? When did you learn Spanish? Are you? So I learned

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  02:51

So I learned  Spanish at Harvard. You did, okay, I did, I did. I took Spanish every semester. Did you start

 

Will Bachman  02:57

Spanish? I did,

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  02:59

I did. And, you know, I took Latin in high school, and I was very good at it. I liked it. But, you know, I said to myself, well, you know, I think wouldn’t it be useful to, you know, speak a modern language, and, you know, very useful modern language at that so, and they really just fell in love with it. Fell in love with the language and the culture.

 

Will Bachman  03:17

I want to do a fist bump here over the because I took Latin in high school, and I took Spanish a at Harvard. But you went a little bit further than me, so you got good enough at Spanish to actually teach Spanish, which

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  03:28

is I did, yeah, I took, I took it every semester. Did, wow, okay,

 

Will Bachman  03:32

so all four years. So,

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  03:33

yeah, yeah, and I really, really liked

 

Will Bachman  03:35

1. Were you like, a romance languages?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  03:38

No, no. I was actually a European history major, just learning Spanish. Okay, yes, exactly. That was just my goal to, you know, to learn a modern language. And I happen to, you know, really fall in love with with Spanish, and it’s been, yeah, I mean, just, you know, really, like a, you know, a love affair that lasts a lifetime, you know, with with the language and culture. And I, you know, do consider myself, you know, bilingual, bicultural

 

Speaker 1  04:03

honorary, you

 

Will Bachman  04:04

mentioned that you met up with David when you were traveling. And were you guys just friends or dating already when you were in college?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  04:12

Or Yeah, so we were, we met kind of toward the end of junior year, and, you know, went out all of senior year. Okay, and you know, so we’re together through graduation, and then, yeah, you know, after graduation, people, you know, pursue different paths and do different things, but, you know, but we stuck together, and we ended up getting married about five years after graduation.

 

Will Bachman  04:38

Oh, okay, alright, so you were still kind of together, and say, Alright, so you are after college, you’re teaching Spanish to Americans in Spain, in Spain, alright. And then, and then what?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  04:50

And then, so, yeah. So then, you know, really, had, you know, came back home and, you know, kind of buckled down and got, got serious. And so I ended up. Working, and it was kind of through my interest in Latin America that I ended up working in the financial sector. I worked first of all, starting in Boston, but later in New York at a company called Scudder Stevens and Clark that was in those a mutual fund company. And so I spent a number of years sort of in that financial sector, mainly in communications jobs. I, you know, my, my last job in the sector was really, you know, managing shareholder communications. And so, yeah, you know, kind of, you know, writing, interviewing portfolio managers, you know, doing, you know, sort of some communications for the the president and the in the chairman, so, yeah, so that, you know, that was a number of years kind of in that, you know, financial sector, you know, First in Boston, later in New York City. And you know, honestly, I’m gonna, you know, I didn’t find it that fulfilling to be honest with you. And you know, I never really warmed to New York City as a place. I mean, I know that’s, you know, kind of a controversial thing to say, but you know, I just never did. I mean, I’m just a you know, girl from outside of Boston. And, you know, maybe it’s like in the blood to not like New York City. But I never really warmed to it. Where were you living in the city? Actually, was not living in the city. I was living in the in the Hudson Valley.

 

Speaker 1  06:31

Oh, great. Continue to live. Yeah. Okay, yeah, yeah.

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  06:36

But so, yes, you know, so and you know, I was in the city for 911 although, fortunately, in Midtown, not downtown. And, you know, yeah, you know, just kind of after that, I, you know, I just, I was like, Yeah, you know. I just, you know, really not enjoying this. I want something new and and also something a little closer to home. And so an opportunity came up at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, now Marist university, but at the time, it was Marist College, and the President of Marist College needed a speechwriter, right? And so I was like, Oh, well, you know, I can definitely do that. You know, of you know, worked in communications, and, you know, a good writer and everything like that. And so, you know, I ended up interviewing and getting that job, and I spent 17 years at Marist College. It was just a wonderful experience.

 

Will Bachman  07:35

Wow, yeah, yeah, speeches and communications,

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  07:41

writing, speeches, communications to the board, communications to the college community. Yeah. I mean, I was really, I was so fortunate to be able to work for president, Dennis Murray, that’s his name. He’s retired now, but just a transformational leader. You know, it’s just, I, you know, he’s just a legend. I think so highly of him, and he’s, he’s president emeritus now, and I, you know, whenever I’m in the area, I’ll stop by and see him, but, yeah, just, you know, really, you know, kind of functioning as his right hand person. A lot of other duties as assigned. But yeah, it was just a, you know, truly wonderful chapter in my life. And you know, got to do my my masters while I was at Marist.

 

Will Bachman  08:30

So what is in those 17 years? Yeah, what is one speech or communication to the board or something that just stands out that you’re particularly proud of?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  08:47

Oh, wow. I mean, you know there’s, there’s probably a few. I mean, I know Dr Murray used to like to comment if there was something, you know, kind of in the news, right? Like, for example, like the, you know, the shooting the Bataclan in Paris, or, you know, just, you know, something, some major news story he would like to comment on that, you know, even after January 6, right? Like, you know, he wanted to comment on that. So I would typically draft, you know, those communications, you know, in his voice for the college community, and, you know, including alumni, the board, you know, the entire the Broad College community. And so, you know, I think you know, just some of those communications, just, you know, on very sensitive topics. You know, just, it was a chance to, you know, kind of be eloquent and, you know, really, you know, express, you know, express sympathy, if you know that was the case. You know, just, you know, really make a. A commentary. And, you know, kind of, you know, just reinforce, you know, I guess, values and worldview. So, so those, those were always, you know, I think interesting experiences.

 

Will Bachman  10:16

And how would it work? Would he call you up and say, Hey, let’s do a comment on some topic, whatever. Would you just chat about it for two or three minutes with him and kind of get his sense of what he wanted to say. Like, what would the conversation be?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  10:31

Like, yeah, yeah. No, exactly. I mean, you know, oftentimes he’d, you know, I work downstairs from him. Oftentimes he just, you know, call me up on my extension and say, Yeah, you know, you know, want to get an email out about, you know, such and such, you know, whether it’s a mass shooting, you know, unfortunately, there was, you know, many of those, or, you know, whatever else. And just, you know, he kind of, you know, say a couple things, yeah, you know, this is, you know, I think what you know, what I’m thinking about it. And, you know, I think I really, you know, when you work with somebody for so long, I think you really just, you know, kind of have their voice in your head, right? You can really channel them. And I, you know, we really had that, you know, that relationship, right, you know, it was kind of like the dentist whisperer, right? Like, you know, knew, you know, kind of how he wanted to say things, and so, you know, you know, draft something up, send it to him. You know, would work on it, work on a couple different versions, and, you know, and then send it out

 

Will Bachman  11:32

after 17 years of that. How? What, when you finish that role? Yeah, what did you know about the world of university leadership that would have been surprising to you as an undergraduate?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  11:54

Yeah, yeah, that’s, that’s a good question. Um, you know, and I think every college leader is different. But I mean, just you know, probably the volume of you know, issues, things that they have to concern themselves with on a daily basis, right? I mean everything from, you know, table seating at the, you know, president’s dinner dance, right? Like, who’s gonna, who should sit with who? Or, you know, closing the deal on, like, a really large gift. Or, you know, reviewing, you know, you know, maybe there’s some, you know, kind of PR challenge, you know, you know, professor has gotten into some trouble, and you know, or you know, there’s some, you know, sticky situation that’s become a PR concern, you know, just, you know, every day was just totally different for me, and I know, you know, that’s also the case for for the college president, and, yeah, you know, it was just a fascinating role, and fascinating in particular to see, you know, to watch Dr Murray from up close, because he was just, you know, such an inspirational and ethical leader. You know, I just have great admiration for him, I mean, and he was, you know, like he was, he was tough, right? I mean, we worked hard. You know, everything had to be perfect. But, I mean, he was, you know, at his core, just, you know, very, you know, caring person with, you know, just a really deep understanding of organizations and people and and management and, yeah, just really quite a an individual is a real privilege

 

Will Bachman  13:48

to what happened next after Marist,

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  13:51

yeah, you know, so, yeah, as I say. I mean, you know, presidents come and go, you know, they retire, you know, at the same at the same time, it kind of happened that, you know, ended up having some real family caregiving challenges at the same time. So that kind of coincided with, you know, wanting to move on, you know, so, so David, my husband, he actually, I don’t know if he talked to you about it at all, but he had open heart surgery. He had a congenital issue that they had to correct, and so, you know, full blown open heart surgery. And you know, kind of at the same time, I’m an only child, and my parents, you know, are older, and my mom was dealing with dementia, and so it was, you my parents were looking to transition to, you know, some senior living. So it just, it just made sense at that time, for a lot of reasons, to kind of, you know, take a step back from full time work to, you know, help my mom and dad to help David and so, you know. And that’s exactly what. I did. And, you know, you’ll never regret doing that, you know, I mean, no job is more important than than family, and so, you know, so I was, you know, really able to spend some quality time there, helping and, you know, at the same time, you know, I’m on a I’m on a nonprofit board. I did some writing for my local newspaper. It just, you know, it worked out fine, you know, it was exactly what I needed at the time.

 

Will Bachman  15:28

And then you said, let’s go on to chapter three. So tell us

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  15:31

exactly next chapter, next chapter. So, yeah, you know. So it was funny, because I wasn’t even really looking for this chapter, and I think, you know, I wanted to go back to full time work. I mean, I’m not really somebody I think that enjoys working from home all the time, you know, I like being part of a team. I like, you know, the social aspects of an office, you know, just like working with people and interacting with people. So anyway, somebody that I knew happened to see this, this job opening in the Office of State Senator Michelle Hinchey, who represents New York’s 41st district here in the Hudson Valley. And so she was looking for a district director in her district office in Kingston, which is very close to where I live in Rhinebeck. And, you know, so I was like, Sure, you know, looks interesting. Let me, let me interview. And, you know, it was, you know, kind of a long process. They had me do, like, a, you know, kind of like an analysis of a district issue. And, you know, had a couple of rounds of interviews and, you know, but they, they offered me the job, and I was like, wow, you know, it’s this really something totally different. I’m going to give it a try. And, you know, obviously, Senator Hinchey, I met with her in person during the interview process. And, you know, she’s, you know, obviously, you know, very charismatic, very smart, very vibrant, you know. So that was exciting, I think, to, you know, work with somebody like that, obviously, you know, ideologically, you know, we’re aligned, and, you know, seem like a great team of people. So I’ve been here almost two years, and it’s, and it’s, it’s really again, you know, just a chapter I didn’t necessarily anticipate, but, you know, but have been really enjoying and so I do, like a few things for for the Senator. So I do oversee our district office here in Kingston, you know, we have a team of constituent services folks that you know, help out constituents. You know they may have, you know issues you know that that they need assistance with, with, you know, with a government office, or with benefits, or, you know, just, you know, a business license. You know, there’s all kinds of you know things that we can that we can help with and connect, to connect folks with state agencies. So I oversee that team. I also run a capital grants program for the Senator. That’s about, it’s a portfolio of about, it’s about 22 million, I think, and it’s, that’s actually a really cool part of the job, because, you know, the the Senator has access to capital money for municipalities, for nonprofits, you know, for organizations like fire, police, to, you know, to help them with capital projects. Right? That could be, you know, putting an addition on a building. It could be purchasing equipment. It could be purchasing a vehicle, you know, and for, you know, small towns and small organizations, you know, it’s really impactful to, you know, get a grant to, you know, install a generator or replace a roof, or, you know, buy, you know, a vehicle that, like an all terrain vehicle, that can help, you know, in, you know, rescues, right? If you’re, you know, like the fire department. So I a lot of my time is spent meeting with organizations throughout the district. And I should mention that the district, it’s pretty big. It’s all of Greene County, all of Columbia County, I guess, about half of Ulster and half of Dutchess County. So, you know, so it’s big, and I just, I love, you know, just meeting with people, and, you know, hearing about what they’re doing, how we might do to help. Because it’s really just, I think the, you know, kind of the best use of the people’s money, right? You know, because this is state money helping, you know, organizations do good work for people. And that’s just, you know, incredibly satisfying. I just, I’m really excited about a recent grant that we did for a a dog rescue organization. I’m a huge animal lover, and we just did a a grant for a. Dog rescue organization in Hudson. They don’t have a proper HVAC system. So I visited their shelter, and it was very cold, and they were just using, like, this makeshift, you know, heating system. And then in the summer, it’s really hot, so, you know, it’s just transformative for them and, you know, and for the animals to, you know, they’ll, they’re going to have a decent, you know, heating and cooling system now.

 

Will Bachman  20:22

So how does that work? Like? Does the senator just get to decide to allocate the pot of money in her district?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  20:29

Or, yeah, so, you know, so all of these meetings that I have, and I meet with, you know, several, you know, organizations a week, and you know, we talk about their needs. And, you know, go through the program. It’s a reimbursable grant program, right? So, you know, an organization has to put the money out first and then get reimbursed by the state, you know. So we go over how, how all of that works, and then, you know, I’ll meet with her, you know, every, you know, month and a half, two months, let’s say, and, you know, bring her the different requests that we’re, you know, getting throughout the district. And, you know, kind of share my recommendation, share, you know, my conversation with the, you know, with the potential grantee. And yeah, you know, she’ll say, Yeah, you know, we can help with all of it. We can help with some of it, you know, you know, you know this one maybe, you know, let’s just put a pin in that for now. And you know, we go from there, and it’s really transformational for a small organization or a small town.

 

Will Bachman  21:27

And how has your understanding of government changed with your inside view?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  21:36

Yeah, yeah, you know, I mean being, you know, and I’ve been a Democrat my, you know, entire life, you know, I do believe in the power of government to, you know, to do good. But I think, you know, for many years I thought, I think I thought of the government more as, like, you know, at the federal level, right? It’s been interesting working in state government. And, you know, just being closer to, you know, state and local officials, and you know, seeing, you know, the good that can be done, you know, directly in people’s lives, right? Because, like, you know, because I meet some of those people, and we’re able to help some of those people, right? Like, just even today, I was, you know, there’s a fire chief up in Columbia County that had got a grant, and he was, you know, having a lot of trouble, you know, kind of getting reimbursed, and, you know, dealing with the state agency. And so, you know, he was really, really frustrated, right? And, you know, so I was able to make a phone call they, you know, all he wanted was to speak to somebody on the phone, right? And so, you know, I was able to get them to give him a call within 10 minutes, like they had figured, you know, whatever the problem was out. And you know, he was delighted, you know. And this, this guy, I’m sure he’s never voted Democratic in his life, right? But, I mean, you know, doesn’t matter. We serve everybody, and, you know, we were able to be helpful, and that’s what we that’s what we want to do, and that’s, you know, very gratifying.

 

Will Bachman  23:09

And what’s the day to day like in terms of, you know, constituents calling and meeting with, sort of donors and constituents and local organizations? Yeah, give us a sense of that?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  23:21

Yeah, no, it’s I kind of, I like to call it everything everywhere, all at once, like, because it is actually really, really busy. It was kind of fun this morning, actually, I got to go to a ribbon cutting at Mills mansion in statsburg, which is in Dutchess County. It’s like one of these, you know, Gilded Age mansions, and they had gotten some state money to redo their their kitchen, right? Like the kitchen that, you know, would, you know, kind of work behind the scenes to, you know, produce one of these 10 course fancy dinners, right? Like one of those, you know, like Downton Abbey type of kitchens. So, anyway, the senator couldn’t go, so, I went and, you know, brought an award, and, you know, said a few words, and then, so then, you know, it was right back up to the office. And, you know, catching up on, like, a million emails and, you know, couple meetings, and it’s just, you know, pretty much every day. That’s how it is. You know, there are really very few slow days. It’s everything, everywhere, all at once, right? Like, just, you know, Slack, going off and email going off and phone calls and, you know, it’s, it’s, it can be a lot, but, you know, I think it’s a lot easier when you love your colleagues, which I do so, you know, so I think that’s helpful.

 

Will Bachman  24:46

I imagine that you’re getting this kind of deep, almost anthropological, but sort of deep view of all of the things that go on in a community that to do. Resident are not visible, but like people trying to get permits for restaurants or like the fire department and people building roads and and just complaints about this and that state, so you’re getting this very rich, deep, thick tapestry of of understanding of life in your in your district?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  25:22

Yeah, no, I think so. And it’s a, you know, and it’s a very interesting district too, because, you know, it is largely rural, although, you know, we do have a couple of cities. There’s Hudson, there’s Kingston, you know, there’s some, you know, very blue pockets, right? I live in Rhinebeck, which is, you know, this little blue bubble. But you know, there’s a lot of areas that are, you know, very heavily Republican. It’s a, you know, purple district, I think it’s fair to say. And, you know, I think the the Senator is very good. And this is, you know, probably a lesson to, you know, a lot of, you know, Democrats out there at the state or national level that, you know, I mean, she just really focuses on, you know, issues that are important to the district. She’s the chair of the Agriculture Committee, you know, and this is a big agricultural region, and so she just, you know, really focuses on what’s important for the district, right? You know, really, really proud that she was behind the universal school lunches and breakfasts that you know are now statewide. You know, it’s a win for kids. It’s a win for, you know, farms. She’d like to get, you know, a lot of that, a lot of that food going to schools, coming from our farms. So, you know, I think you know, and she’s obviously, you know, a Democrat, and you know, has views, as you would imagine, on, you know, reproductive choice, and you know what ice is doing right now. But I mean, she’s just very focused on things that are important to her constituents, right, like, you know, affordability and and, you know, cutting through, you know, government red tape, and, you know, I think that’s how she gets reelected. Is just being responsive to what people care about, right?

 

Will Bachman  27:12

Tell us about any courses or professors at Harvard that you had that continue to resonate with you in some way. Yeah.

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  27:22

I mean, I think, I mean, I think the most long lasting, you know, impact, I think are, you know, from the Spanish classes that I took, right? And, you know, and obviously, you know, for years I’ve been, you know, practicing Spanish. You know, my husband’s from Mexico, and, you know, that’s been like, a lifelong thing that really started, you know, with that very strong foundation at Harvard, so that, you know, that’s been impactful my whole life. But, I mean, I still remember courses like, you know, Michael sandel’s Justice, right? That was a, you know, just a unbelievable class. And I still, you know, every now and again, I will, you know, think of the examples that that he gave right, like the guy on the train that you know, if he doesn’t do anything, he’s going to kill one person. But if he, you know, moves to the right, he’s going to kill three, you know. You know, it was just a captivating class. And even, you know, it was, you know, huge. It was in Sanders Theater, but you know, he was just a, you know, just a uniquely, you know, just wonderful lecturer. And you know, I remember freshman year, I took Russian Revolution class with Richard pipes that, you know, I still remember to this day is just, you know, he, he just, you know, had such a deep well of knowledge. And, you know, it’s an inherently fascinating subject, right? But, I mean, I still, I still think about that class a lot, and,

 

Speaker 1  29:01

yeah, you know, now

 

Will Bachman  29:04

it’s a little bit unusual. I don’t know too many people who said came into college and said, Hey, I’m going to take Spanish a freshman year and then just keep taking Spanish all the way through, or any foreign language. A lot of people came in with a foreign language, and some people may be majored in a language and French or Spanish or one of the Asian languages, but not many people do it just, you know, because they’re excited. What? What was it that got you motivated to not just take it freshman year, but to keep taking taking it all the way through, and,

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  29:44

yeah, you know, I mean, I think I again, I think it was the desire to, you know, be conversant, be fluent, fluent in a in a foreign language. One of my dad. Cousins who, you know, we’ve always been close to. She married a man from Colombia, and she was a Spanish teacher, so she had kind of a similar passion for the Spanish language, and, you know, a similar sort of, you know, comfort in the Spanish speaking world, right? And I think I don’t know that. I think always really spoke to me, you know, one of my freshman year roommates who, you know, I’m still, you know, very, very close with, and I was able to see her a couple of years ago. She is from Puerto Rico, and, you know, so she was, you know, really, really helpful in, you know, you know, helping me learn. I mean, I just, I really, you know, I do over it, and I just, you know, loved it, I think, in a way that wouldn’t have happened with French. Like I still find French really difficult, you know, hard to pronounce and, you know, but yeah, you know, I think just, you know, there was a cultural affinity that you know has lasted a lifetime,

 

Will Bachman  31:05

and since your days of teaching Spanish in Spain, do you and David typically speak in Spanish together or English? Or how does Spanish play a role in your life now? Do you guys travel much in Spanish? Yeah.

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  31:20

I mean, we do, you know, we tend to, you know, speak a mix, oh, we do English and Spanish, yeah. And, you know, we have a daughter that’s 16, and she, she’s taking Spanish as well. And she, obviously, she’s grown up in the US. Her life is in English. She’s a lot better understanding Spanish than speaking it. And, you know, is something that you know, hopefully will, she’ll continue to to work on because, like, you know, my in laws, you know, don’t speak English, for example, so, you know, I think you know, for her to have a, you know, a richer relationship with them, I think it’s, you know, helpful that she continues to get better. But yeah, you know, we do do a lot of travel, you know, go to Mexico every year to see family. We were in Spain last month, actually saw another wonderful friend of ours, from from Harvard, from the class of 92 who’s in Spain. Well, he it’s funny, he lives in London, but he came to see us in Spain because he has an apartment there. So we hung out with him and his, his brother lives there. And so it was, yeah, it was just fantastic. And, but yeah, you know, that’s one thing I’m very grateful for, is, you know, being able to do a lot of travel. And, yeah, it sure is easier when you you know, can communicate with people.

 

Will Bachman  32:42

Amazing, yeah. Elisabeth, for listeners who want to keep track of what you are up to, where is the best place to find you online?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  32:54

Well, I’m on LinkedIn, I’m on Facebook. I have an Instagram. I’m not super, super active on Instagram, but I do, I do have an account. So, yeah, I would say, you know, LinkedIn, Facebook. If you’re in, you know, let me know if you’re in the, the Rhinebeck area. It’s, you know, it’s an easy train trip from New York City, and it is just the loveliest town I’m so, you know, I love living there.

 

Will Bachman  33:22

What is one thing that you love about living in your area?

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  33:26

Oh, the downtown. And I can walk to downtown from from my house, you know, there’s restaurants, there’s shops. It’s the type of place you you know, run into folks, you know, you know, it is a, it’s a small town, but it’s, you know, it’s very much, I think, connected to New York City, you know. So there’s, like, a lot of sophistication there too, you know, but it’s still, you know, far enough away from that crazy hustle and bustle that it’s very, you know, just a very nice lifestyle. It’s, you know, it’s a place you just, you know, walk your dog downtown, and, you know, run into friends. And, you know, have brunch.

 

Will Bachman  34:11

Amazing. Elisabeth, thank you so much for joining today.

 

Elisabeth Tavarez  34:15

It’s my pleasure. Thanks for inviting me. Thank.