Liz G #4 - nominated by her friend, Jessica.

If I had to use one word to describe Liz Giannattasio, it would be selfless. 
She is always giving to others, yet she completely forgets about herself in the process. 
Liz is a Special Education Teacher and has been for over 10 years. 
She works with children that have special needs—autism, learning disabilities, etc. 
Liz took a leave of absence for a short time to raise her son, Nicholas but had always 
planned to go back. The plan happened sooner than expected when she and her husband 
suddenly split and she found herself to be a single mom in need of an income to provide 
for her son. She was torn about returning to work. On one hand, it broke her heart to not 
be able to be with Nicholas all day but on the other hand, she is passionate about her job,
about helping others and frankly, she needed the money. So ultimately, she decided to go 
back. The beauty about Liz is that she goes to work with a smile on her face everyday, 
never letting those children know that she so wishes she could be home with her own child. 
That is Liz—professional, caring, and giving--generous with her time and energy for others. 

After a long day when Liz leaves work, she picks up her son. Most single, working moms 
would want to go home and put their feet up—not Liz. She grasps that last bit of energy 
from somewhere and finds it in her to take Nicholas to dinner to meet friends, 
or to Jungle Rapids for some fun or just the backyard to run around and be silly. 
On any given Saturday or Sunday, you can find Liz and Nicholas at the Train Museum downtown
or the Farmer’s Market or even just the local Park. She does whatever she can to be 
completely hands-on and expose Nicholas to everything a 3-year old boy should be doing, 
even though their lives have been turned upside down and their family is longer the way 
it used to be. She truly enjoys spending time with her son and tries her best to make life 
as “normal” as possible for him. Liz is a wonderful mother and a brilliant example for her 
son.

Nicholas went through a rough time (as any child would) when his father moved out and 
it crushed Liz. Somewhere along the way, Liz lost a piece of herself also and needs to 
feel that she deserves to get it back. 
I know that a new haircut or personal training sessions won’t do that alone, 
but it’s a start. I can think of no one more deserving of a makeover and some pampering! 
The photo session with Dana is what I believe will be invaluable to Liz because she 
doesn’t have any family in the area and rarely captures photos of she and Nicholas together. 
That would be so wonderful for her to have—a keepsake that I know she will 
appreciate and cherish more than anything. Above all, I think that Liz winning this contest 
would mean that she would be putting herself first for once. 
That is the greatest prize of all.