Personal

Resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; formerly of Montclair, New Jersey, 1980-2015; raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey.
Marital Status: Married to Shelby Grifo Swayze; Three children: Ian, Sasha, and Austin; and six grandchildren.

Education

Graduate of Kean University, night student, 1980. BA, Sociology and Social Work major.
Attended Essex County College, 1969-1970.
Graduate, Thomas Jefferson High School, Elizabeth, New Jersey, 1967.

Prior Employment

Union County Division of Social Services (1972 – 2015), including:
Assistant Administrative Supervisor of Social Work, overseeing the Work First New Jersey program (2007 – 2015);
Social Work Supervisor and LIHEAP Coordinator, (1987 – 2007)

Affiliations

Founder and former Board Member At-Large, New Jersey SHARES Founder/Former Chairperson, New Jersey Low Income Energy Network
Member, Anti-Povery Network of New Jersey (APN)
Member, National Energy & Utility Affordability Coalition (NEUAC)
Member, Weavers Way Co-op

Awards

Employee of the Month, County of Union (NJ), June, 2001
Energy Vanguard Award, New Jersey Community Action Association, October, 1998.
National Fuel Funds Network’s Sister Patricia Kelly Achievement Award, June, 1998.
Program Achievement Award, National Association of Counties, for Union County, NJ Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, 1990.

Politics

Co-Chair, 22nd Ward Open Caucus, Philadelphia, PA
Member, Open Wards Philly Steering Committee (Communications Subcommittee)

Philadelphia Democratic Committeeperson, 22-03 and Member, 22nd Ward Executive Committee
Volunteer, Bernie Sanders for President, Philadelphia, PA, 2016
Listowner, S1068 Mailing List; first online lobbying effort in New Jersey, resulting in all bills posted to the Internet, 1994-1996
Montclair Publicity Chairman, John Anderson For President Committee, 1980
Chairman, October 15th Vietnam Moratorium Committee, Essex County College, 1969
Chairman, Union County Youth For Dumont, Republican candidate for Governor, 1965
Union County Teen Age Republicans (1962-1967)

Last updated: March 1, 2022