The Cirillo Family: Positive, Helpful Neighbors

Resident Feature by Holly Stupak

Photos by MicDuff Photography www.MicDuff.com

Leighann and Mike Cirillo and their three children are an outgoing, friendly family, the perfect example of good neighbors. Full of positive energy, Mike and Leighann encourage their children to keep a positive attitude and help others through everyday gestures of kindness.

Leighann grew up in Broomall with two brothers and attended Marple High School. She graduated from Ursinus College in 2001 with a B.S. in Psychology. She still talks daily and often travels with the dear friends she made while at Marple and Ursinus. After college, Leighann worked as a social worker, a home health aide, and in special education for several years.

Leighann and Mike Cirillo

Photo by MicDuff Photography www.MicDuff.com

Mike grew up in Trenton, NJ, with his sister and brother and graduated from Notre Dame High School in Lawrenceville, NJ. He attended Muhlenberg College, where he was a fouryear starter on the baseball team, and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 2001. Mike’s core group of friends from Muhlenberg still get together each year, and many were in each other’s weddings. After graduation, Mike started in Cintas Corporation’s management program, and then spent 10 years there as a Sales Representative and later as a Sales Manager.

Mike and Leighann met in 2005, at a mutual friend’s 25th birthday. Mike’s friend Joe happened to be dating Leighann’s friend Stacy, and at that party, Mike and Leighann hit it off. They discovered their common love of music and going to live concerts. They also enjoyed spending a lot of time at the Jersey shore. After dating for two years, they got married in 2007 and honeymooned in Hawaii.

As newlyweds, Mike and Leighann lived in Willow Grove, halfway between both of their families. Eventually, they moved back to Leighann’s hometown of Broomall, where they’ve lived for eight years. “Although we technically aren’t part of a neighborhood, we have amazing, helpful neighbors that we can always share laughs with,” said Leighann. “And our children have close friends in every direction. We’re lucky to be part of such a supportive community!”

Leighann and Mike have two sons and a daughter. Their oldest, Dominic, is a friendly and conscientious 12-year-old who loves sports and all things music. A 6th-grader at Paxon Hollow Middle School, he keeps busy playing travel soccer, basketball and baseball for the Marple Township Little League (MTLL). Dominic also loves performing on stage or entertaining his family by singing and playing his electric guitar. Last summer, he participated in the Upper Darby Summer Stage youth program, and he starred in a production of Newsies at the Upper Mainline YMCA. Like his parents, Dominic loves music and seeing his favorite artists at live concerts.

L-R: Dominic, Arden and Liam Cirillo

Liam, 9, is a quiet and kind 3rd-grader at Russell Elementary School. His favorite subjects are Art and Science. Liam is also quite athletic, and enjoys soccer, basketball, and MTLL baseball. A big gamer, he loves Fortnite, NBA2K20, and Apex. Liam was instrumental in their family getting a dog this spring: After months of pleading his case, which included a PowerPoint presentation(!), Liam’s parents gave in and adopted a 3-month old Maltese, Yorkshire Terrier and Poodle mix (a Morkie-Poo) whom they named “Marshmallow.” The past few months of everyone being homebound have proven that it was the perfect time for the Cirillos to adopt a dog so everyone could learn how to take care of it.

The youngest Cirillo, Arden, is a strong-willed, fun-loving 4-yearold who’s always full of energy. When she’s not cheering on her brothers at one of their many sporting events, she’s playing with her dolls, swinging on her swing set, or getting into a bit of mischief. Although Arden is the youngest member of the family, she often manages, according to her parents, to be “the one in charge.” In addition to attending Pre-K at St. Pius X, Arden also takes ballet and tap lessons at a local dance studio. Resident Feature

Before having children, Leighann worked as a special instructor in Delaware County’s Early Intervention program, working with very young children with developmental delays. She worked with them in their own homes and really got to know the children and their families. When Leighann was young, one of her 30(!) cousins was wheelchair-bound due to cerebral palsy. “I spent many years helping to care for him, and that made a huge impact on me,” she said. “My cousin was such a special person and brought me so much joy! He made me realize that I wanted to work with the special needs population.” After Leighann became a mother, she decided to take a break from teaching, to become a stay-at-home mom. She loves watching her children grow and change, helping them in their learning, and being an active part of their school communities. When her youngest is a little older, Leighann hopes to go back to Early Intervention or social work.

After 10 years at Cintas, Mike moved into the IT field, and now works as an Account Manager for Dell Technologies. What he finds most satisfying about his job is helping major companies develop their IT infrastructure to increase their business productivity. And, he really enjoys the friendships and camaraderie he holds with his clients and coworkers there.

Leighann and Mike are active in the Marple Community. A former baseball player himself, Mike can be found coaching both of his boys on the respective teams for the MTLL. He also enjoys personally coaching Dominic and Liam to improve their baseball and basketball skills. The Cirillos are members of St. Pius X Parish in Broomall, where Leighann taught CCD and where Arden attends preschool. Leighann is a Russell Elementary school PTO member, always pitching in for classroom events and the annual Fun Fair. And through school clubs like Best Buddies or Kids Helping Kids, Mike and Leighann encourage their children to be involved in programs that help others, especially children with special needs.

Last May, Leighann had a health crisis that turned into a valuable lesson: Her mom’s discovery of cancer during a routine visit to the dermatologist prompted Leighann to have a dermatologist check a worrisome spot on her leg. It was melanoma that required a two-hour surgery and 80 stitches. Grateful for clear biopsies since, Leighann is now a community advocate for sun protection, skin cancer awareness and yearly screenings.

The Cirillo Family loves traveling, especially to California and Disney World. They look forward to visiting again, to check out the new Star Wars and Avatar rides. The Cirillos’ summers always include many trips to Long Beach Island, where Mike’s sister Heather owns a home. They were disappointed that the pandemic caused them to cancel their trip to Italy for a May family wedding, but they’re looking forward to rescheduling that as it will be their first trip to Europe.

When the Cirillos aren’t traveling or running to various sports games, they all love going to concerts, spending time with friends in Marple (especially at the Splash Club in Broomall), and watching Eagles football games. When the pandemic caused the Cirillo family to slow down this Spring, they kept their positive attitude and created their own at-home fun. “We love to have kitchen dance parties,” said Leighann. “Dominic plays the guitar while the rest of the family sings their hearts out. I’m trying to convince them to start a family rock band!”

Do you know a family that readers of our magazine might like to meet in an upcoming issue? Nominate them by email to Holly Stupak at HStupak@BestVersionMedia.com.