|
 |
Family oriented. Community minded.
|
Greer Tan Swiston, married to her best friend, Rob, is a long-time Newton resident, homeowner and working
parent, and has always been active in the community. A former IT executive turned real estate agent and a chronic volunteer, Greer is stepping up to the plate to further serve Newton.
Greer is proud to share the same political philosophies
of Abraham Lincoln
and the same passion that "government of the people, by the people, for the people,
shall not perish from the earth."
Greer has been appointed by the Governor's office
to serve as a Commissioner on the Massachusetts Commission on the
Status of Women as well as the Judicial Nominating Commission.
|
|
|
The fact of the matter is, life happens. The role of government is to make it easier for life to happen.
A community volunteer since childhood, Greer has been a Girl Scout, participated in walkathons, telethons and jumpathons. Following family tradition, Greer has served in the Greater Boston
Chinese Cultural Association (GBCCA) in
various capacities for almost 30 years, including Youth Leader, Executive
Committee member and currently as a teacher at the Huaxin Chinese Language School for children.
|
Greer has a reputation for bringing people together. Whether it be organizing a companywide weekly sushi
social, reviving an alumni club or organizing Newton
Parents for Education, Greer appreciates the value of community, communication and comraderie.
Making most of those skills, Greer served on the Board of the Newton League of Women Voters of Newton, is currently serving on the Board of NewTV and has volunteered as a tutor for the Newton Public Schools.
Greer has participated in fundraisers, field clean-ups and
school appreciation activities. She serves as a Girl Scout troop leader, soccer coach, and
ran the Little League concession stand at Lyons field for two years.
A past president of the Boston Chapter of the Society
of Women Engineers and advisory Board member for the National Association of Asian American Professionals in Boston, Greer
is also active as a Mentor for
MentorNet,
ASPIRE
and MIT's ICAN program.
|
|
|
Trained as a software engineer, Greer has worked in the High Tech industry in places like NASA's Jet Propulsion
Labs in Pasadena, CA, dot com start-ups along the 128 circle
as well as venerable corporations the likes of Fidelity Investments
and Merrill Lynch in downtown Boston and Cambridge. Over
nearly two decades in the computer industry, Greer rose steadily through
the ranks as a respected technologist and moved into senior
management rounding out her technical skills with quality
control, project management and overall office operations
and finance management.
Building a Stronger Newton
|
|
Having grown up in the Commonwealth, Greer has roots in New England. Her parents,
grandmother, along with other extended family, all still live in Massachusetts.
Greer has a substantial personal experience in the welfare of citizens of all ages
and backgrounds. Add to that her experience in business, her discipline
in project and budget management, she is in a prime position to help achieve the
much-needed economic and educational reforms.
Greer graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and is
accustomed to challenges and hard work. It is clear that Massachusetts
is in dire need of help. Newton needs help.
The daughter of immigrants, Greer
has firsthand experience of the rewards of being an American
citizen. So she is answering the call by her community to stand up, be a part of the solution and
do her civic duty.
|
|
Greer Tan Swiston, 42, and her husband, Robert, celebrated
their 15th anniversary this year. They have two children,
Parker (8th grade) and Kayla (4th grade), who are students
at Day Middle School and Franklin Elementary school respectively.
They are both actively involved
in Newton Community programs. Greer also authored a children's story
that was published in the Houston Chronicle.
|
|
Actively working to solve problems
Greer feels lucky to have the health, the energy and the means to give back to the community. Always one willing to take action, Greer has been a long time community activist. When her neighbors were concerned about crime, Greer worked with the police department to organize and train the residents for a neighborhood watch group. When her husband wanted to learn Chinese but didn't want to go into Chinatown, she worked with the local community center to start adult Chinese language classes. When her neighbors and friends expressed frustration with the city, Greer runs for office.
As a result, Greer has been featured as a keynote
speaker at a variety of mentoring, networking and community building events. Greer has
spoken at a luncheon for Partners in Transportation, at NorthEastern University for the
Asian American Lawyer's Association and most recently, at Harvard University to a room full of female
students interested in public service.
Greer's activism and enthusiasm for her community has made her a lightening rod for
local Asian Americans, neighborhood associations and parent groups needing help in navigating through governmental
process and paperwork and having their voices heard. She hopes to inspire and encourage more every day citizens to step out and run for public office.
|
|
|
|
