Giving and Caring, for Generations
May 14, 2025
When Karen Pizzarello P’86, P’87, P’92, GP’23, GP’24, GP’24, GP’25 watches her granddaughter, Anna ’25, walk across the stage at Commencement next month, it will be the seventh and final Wheeler graduation for her family. With all of those personal connections, it’s fitting that Karen describes Wheeler as “a community that became family.”
Her daughters, Lisa ’86 and Laura ’87, started at Wheeler in the 3rd and 2nd grades respectively, and they were followed five years later by their brother, Peter Jr. ’92. Karen’s four grandchildren, Arden ’23, Franklin ’24, Avery ’24, and Anna ’25, all started at Wheeler in the 4th grade.
“My husband, Peter Sr., and I became very involved at Wheeler, we knew the heads, the faculty, the staff, and the coaches. Over the years, I volunteered in the Parents Association and co-chaired the Clothing Sale, and we participated in various capital campaigns. In 1988, after our daughters were off to college, I decided to volunteer more significantly at Wheeler,” Karen says. She started in pre-kindergarten, and soon thereafter, Lower School faculty member Caroline Fields asked if she wanted to help in the kindergarten class. “It was wonderful,” Karen remembers, “I found it stimulating to meet all the different children and their families each year, and it was rewarding to be actively involved in the core curriculum. I proudly volunteered in Wheeler’s kindergarten for 32 years.”
Giving of yourself takes time, energy, and commitment – especially for over three decades! Why did she do it for all that time? “I’ve always enjoyed children,” she says. “I graduated from St. Louis University with a BS in Nursing, and I started my career at Rhode Island Hospital, so giving and caring has always been a part of who I am.”
Karen needed to finally pause her volunteering at Wheeler during the pandemic, but she recently returned to see some of her former kindergarteners – now seniors – and to receive a special award from Head of School Allison Gaines Pell for her incredible generosity and Wheeler spirit.
Anna was there to celebrate her grandmother, too. “It was really special to see,” Anna says. “It shows how much she loves Wheeler and what a special place this is.”
As they think about saying goodbye to Wheeler, Anna and Karen both say it will be bittersweet. “But this is just the next step for us,” Anna says. “We’ll definitely be back.”
Karen agrees. “Wheeler is in my heart,” she says. “I will always be an active member of the Wheeler community.”
