Alesevich Family Fund

The Alesevich Family Fund didn't begin with paperwork in the Valley Community Foundation (VCF) offices; it started years earlier with a family, a kitchen table, and love.

Family is very important to Chris and Sam Alesevich. Both their families owned neighborhood grocery stores: Charles Hron and Peter Alesevich were the proprietors of Hron's Market in Stratford and Shelton Arms Market in Bridgeport, respectively. Their moms, Harriet and Ann, were always ready to entertain and take care of others.

Through their parents' examples, Chris and Sam have carried on a tradition of providing for and welcoming family and friends. They are known for gatherings to celebrate holidays, special occasions, and those spontaneous get-togethers that make life grand. The table is always full of Chris' culinary creations with attention to individual tastes. Sam, who is known to enjoy Chris' cooking, reaches out to help family and friends with his ability to fix just about anything.

When Chris and Sam decided to formalize their years of giving to the community and explore the best way to establish their legacy, they sought information from Liz Kennard, their dear friend and founder of the Mary Fund at VCF. This led them to the Valley Community Foundation.

Spending their working lives as educators, Chris in primary grades teaching children to read and write and Sam teaching printing and graphic design to high school students, they know the impact of caring teachers and public education. "We have a special place in our hearts for both the young and old," Chris shared. "As educators, we not only want to support youth programs, but we also want to respect the elders of our community and the contributions they make."

By sitting at the family table, their children, Christopher and Elizabeth, have grown to understand the importance of family and friends, the gift of education, and the responsibility to help others.

Chris and Sam hope that through the Alesevich Family Fund, "we are extending the reach of our family to other children and families who may not be as fortunate as we have been." The values of education, compassion, and civic responsibility, which their fund aims to support, are synonymous with the conversations that occur at the Alesevich family table and will continue to take place for generations to come.

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