Background
Garcia is a proud product of the New Haven Public Schools. During this time he traveled to Kenya and Zimbabwe as a NHPS Ambassador for International Education, became a founding member of New Haven’s Peace Commission, and was a Hugh O’Brien Youth Ambassador. He earned scholarships from his father’s local and national union, the United Food and Commercial Workers, as well as an Elk’s Club National Scholarship, and recognition as a National Hispanic Merit Scholar.
Garcia earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University, which brought Garcia to his first elected office as co-chair of Despierta Boricua, Yale’s leading service and social organization for Puerto Ricans. He simultaneously served on the International Board of Directors of Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity, the nation’s largest Jewish fraternity.
After graduation in 1994, Garcia joined the Anti-Defamation League as Assistant Project Director, where he learned to build bridges of understanding among people of very different backgrounds. Shortly after starting his private sector career at People’s Bank, Garcia won his first elective office as a New Haven Alderman. Garcia joined Ward 1 Alderman Josh Civin in sponsoring Connecticut’s first Living Wage Legislation. He tackled alcohol and tobacco advertising near schools, and sought to inject performance measures and accountability into the system.
Garcia decided to compliment his public service career with advancement of his business education, once again at Yale, where he graduated with an MBA in 2001. This lead him to work as a private wealth manager with a New York investment bank, followed by a move to a smaller firm for greater flexibility. After Garcia’s mother was diagnosed with a recurrence of breast cancer in 2006, he moved to Connecticut to be closer to family. (She passed away in November 2008).
Today, Gerry Garcia is a financial advisor with LPL Financial, the nation’s largest bank for independent financial advisors, and a consultant on strategy matters to a number of small companies. He was married in October.