Meet Lisa Assoni: A Life of Gratitude

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Photo by Julie Cheshire Photography

Story by Kara Navolio, Northgate resident since 1991

Lisa Assoni is a San Francisco native who has lived in the Bay Area all of her 72 years. In 2016 she moved to the Northgate area, to a townhouse off of Northgate Road’s equestrian area, which she calls a hidden jewel.

She attended Catholic schools in San Francisco, graduating in 1964 from St. Paul’s. While attending a carnival held at her local church, she met Richard, and the childhood sweethearts married in 1966. Richard worked as a firefighter in Berkeley, while Lisa proudly stayed home raising their two daughters, Michelle and Gina.

Lisa always had a small business or career going as her girls grew up. At first she sold Avon, ringing door bells in her neighborhood while her first baby tagged along. When the girls were older she began learning floral design and started working part-time for Geraldine Pember creating wedding bouquets. After two years of training, her entrepreneurial yearnings led her to start her own business “Flowers By Lisa.” The relationship with Geraldine has lasted over 45 years. As Lisa reflects, “Geraldine is like my second mother. She encouraged me to finish my college education and get my teaching credential. She is still very active and feisty as ever. I’m blessed to call her my very dear friend and mentor!”

Lisa got her teaching credential from Cal State Hayward (now Cal State East Bay) and went on to teach in the Mt. Diablo Unified School District (MDUSD) and the Lafayette School District. Her first teaching job was a Fitness Instructor for the Adult Education program. “I was assigned to assisted living communities, but I didn’t really understand much about aging. When I met my students, these folks wanted to be more active, so I developed my own style of helping older adults have more mobility and stay healthy. I even promoted the idea to our local cable station, and the director loved the concept. My television career was beginning to bloom. All exercises were done while sitting in a chair. My friend, Terrie, who helped create our show called “Rock of Ages,” assisted me. It aired 1985 through 1987.”

In 1987 she took on a new challenge teaching Independent Living skills to mentally ill teens and adults recently released from Napa State Hospital. Lisa says, “I noticed what some of my students were eating for lunch. Yikes, I was shocked. Two pieces of bread, slapped on with 1 slice of cold meat and 1 cup of a sweet drink. They often complained about their dinner; and that was no feast either. Starches piled high and fatty meats. I was so upset, and my Italian temper flared. My passion for feeding and cooking exploded, even though my cooking skills needed some honing. Being Italian, I rose to the occasion and began making some yummy, healthy, delicious lunches for my students.”

Using her previous television experience, she pitched the idea of making meals in minutes to her previous director. She designed over 300 recipes for the half hour show “The ShortCut Cook,” which was born in 1995. It was a live-to-tape show, with no cutting, editing or stopping and led to her first cookbook Beat the Clock Cooking.

However, on the home front something else was brewing. Lisa’s husband, Richard, was exhibiting signs that would later be diagnosed as Early On-set Alzheimer’s disease. He was only 52. By 2003, the ShortCut Cook Kitchen was closed, and Lisa devoted all her time to Richard’s care. Soon Lisa became ill too from the stress and needed help with Richard.

The day after their 41st wedding anniversary they lost their home to a devastating fire. “Our home was a total loss. The house resembled our relationship: the exterior looked fine, but the inside was destroyed.” Richard passed away eight months later. Lisa reflects, “Grief and misery can come to anyone’s door, and when it does, it’s devastating. I know it’s easier said than done, but you must rise above the past, count your blessings for all the good memories and decide to make a better future. Since cooking was my passion, I cooked, boiled, and simmered through my troubles with every stir. Food is essential to our well being. When grieving, you must eat well to stay well. Also by helping others, this can give you a new perspective on living. I wrote my second book Good Grief Cooking, while trying to find grief-relief.” (It is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble under the name Lisa Rubino.)

Lisa enjoys spending time with her children and grandchildren: Emily, Michelle, Lisa, Gina, Isabella, Andrew (son-in-law) and Aiden.

Lisa also found relief from her grief in learning a new hobby while making new friends. She joined Diablo Valley Bridge Club and learned the challenging game at age 62. She enjoys spending time with her children and grandchildren, her rescue dog Lulu, and her boyfriend, Tony. She also volunteers at St. Vincent de Paul’s food pantry serving the Monument Corridor in Concord. She contributes articles to the Bridge Forum and the Berkeley Fire Department Newsletter, and you will find her recipes in some issues of Northgate Living.

Lisa and boyfriend Tony

“When people ask me how I am, I respond ‘couldn’t be better,’” says Lisa. “This reinforcement of positive thinking actually gives me a boost to count my blessings.”

It was a big transition moving from a large house with a pool to her lovely townhouse. But now, “with less stress, life is much more enjoyable. My nice neighbors are the best, and we have an overflow of good people. This contemporary style of living made me feel right at home. Community is more than valuable; it’s a necessity.”