Longtime Shelburne resident George Schiavone is a busy man. Heavily involved in the political and non-profit sectors, George is a very involved and informed citizen. Here are some details about his many activities and causes.

Family: George and Linda have been married for 50 years. They have four children and 10 grandchildren. Their children's names are Anne, George, Mary, and Elizabeth. George laughs as he recalls someone once telling him that his children were named after the Royal family in England.

Education, career, and politics: George grew up in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. and went to college at Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y. and studied electrical engineering. His first job was with General Electric (GE) in Erie, Mass. for eight years. George then moved to Burlington because GE was an outpost and there were several jobs available. His family loved Vermont; George smiles saying that the family was raised on skis. In 1963, the family moved to Shelburne, and has been living here ever since. George worked for GE for 40 years, retiring in 1992. However, for George, retiring did not mean putting his feet up and resting. In 1992, George ran for a seat in legislature, won, and did that for the next 13 years. When asked what his specific interests were in the legislature, George responded and said that you could pick and choose the interest you most wanted to pursue. For himself, he said he enjoyed being the only person who fought the then Vermont Governor Howard Dean on putting a commuter rail in the state.

George also talked about his time on the education committee, and dealt with the controversy over merit pay for teachers. George thought that teachers ought to have performance appraisals on a regular basis in order to receive merit pay. The teachers fought the argument, and to this day, George does not think all teachers receive some kind of appraisal of their work. George calls these kinds of issues "invigorating" and "really fun to do."

George is also very active in the Shelburne Town Republican Committee. For a time he was the chair and is still active in the group.  

Non-profit and other work: George has been involved with several non-profit organizations in the past, but his longest tenure has been with the Burlington Emergency Shelter. He has been on the board since 1992. George also is a Justice of the Peace in Shelburne; he is an alternate on the Chittenden County Metropolitan Planning Organization; a Rotary Club member, and volunteers on GE healthcare projects.

Favorite food: Corn on the cob

Hobbies: Skiing, hiking, biking, and loves walking/running on Shelburne Farms

Music: George says the stations in his car are set to all 70's and 80's music

Movie: "The Fastest Indian"

First Concert: A sixth grade Christmas concert

Bucket List: Visit central Italy (where his grandfather is from) and bicycle in France