Anastasia (Anne) Michals, President of the Philoptochos of the Metropolis of New Jersey, spent many years as an educator.
With a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s in Education and Administration, she worked extensively in primary and secondary schools as an educator and administration, leaving a position as a high school vice principal to raise her children, John and Anastasia (Bobbie).
But Michals never ceased to lend her skills, talents, and abilities to those outside her home, too. Most noteworthy among her many contributions to her local community, as well as to our Greek-American community, were the nine years she spent on the Manasquan Board of Education, serving as president for four; her current role as Vice President of the Manasquan High School Endowment Fund, which supports the needs of students through private donations; and last but not least, her work with Philoptochos.
In 2003, Michals joined the St. George Greek Orthodox Church community in Asbury Park, NJ, and quickly became an active member of Philoptochos, serving as a Board member and eventually becoming the organization’s President in 2007.
During her Presidency, she led the Board in increasing the Membership by almost 40%. Since 2007, she served as the Chair, along with many Co Chairs, of the On Premise Auction of the Annual Fall Luncheon and Fashion Show, increasing funds raised for charitable giving by more than 65%.
Michals served regularly as co-Chair of many Philoptochos committees, including the Palm Sunday and August Bake Sales. Her commitment to the concept of teamwork moved the Society forward, not only in its ability to extend their Social Service giving, but in its ability to assist financially in the building of a new St. George church complex.
Before she left office, Michals developed the Standing and Special Committees document, along with Committee Mission Statements, which were adopted by the Board of Directors in June, 2011, and now serves as the basis for all committee work that guides the St. George Philoptochos Society.
Together with her friends and colleagues, Michals created a Standing and Special Committee Handbook, which serves as a recruitment tool for membership, as well.
His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios in 2010 appointed Michals to the National Philoptochos Board. Since 2009, she has also served as Treasurer of New Jersey Philoptochos Board. Demetrios and New Jersey. She also co-chaired, along Michael Karloutsos, the 42nd annual Clergy-Laity Congress, in 2014, and co-chaired the Philoptochos Convention.
Regarding those initiatives, Michals told TNH “it was the greatest thrill of her life to be able to work with so many inspiring stewards of the Greek Orthodox Church and to be a part of bringing them together in the Metropolis of New Jersey. Welcoming a delegation gathered in Philadelphia to share fellowship and the love and concern for our Holy Orthodox Church was an extraordinary honor.”
Regarding her love of education, she said “although teachers were important role models for me and this is why I selected teaching as a profession, as a second-generation Greek-American, my parents were our first role models; for me and my four siblings. Along with my Aunt Katherine Kaliades, my mother’s sister, they shaped our lives, and the lives of our cousins. My mother and Aunt Katherine, in whose home we spent a great deal of time, would teach all of us the invaluable lesson of perseverance. Through their work ethic, steadfast nature and their continued effort to achieve things that might have seemed out of reach for some, they firmly molded us into responsible human beings.”
She spoke with much respect about her father. “It would be my father, Vaselios William (Voss) Koles that would develop in all of us the qualities that would inspire us to ‘do the right thing’. Uniquely intelligent, my father held the attainment of high moral standards and a good reputation as the most important achievement for which one could strive. He burned into our core the idea that material achievements can be gained and lost in the blink of an eye, but it would be one’s high morals and good reputation that would be gained with honest effort and should never be casually tossed aside because these valuables would not easily be attained again.”
Her father was a Yale-educated industrial engineer, and her mother was an educator. Born and raised in Jersey City, NJ as were her parents, Michals married Jeff Michals in 1977. Their children are both professionals. John is the Founding CEO of Dorado Energies, and Bobbie is Director of the Canarsie Ascend Lower Charter School.
Anastasia and Jeff Michals will celebrate their 38th wedding anniversary in July.
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