Paradise Valley woman applies for school board

A stay-at-home Paradise Valley mom has applied for the seat on Boundary County School Board left vacant from trustee Maria LaBarbera’s death on Nov. 15.

As of Tuesday, Amy Fess, 40, was the only one to express an interest in the job, said superintendent Dr. Don Bartling. The deadline to apply is Tuesday, Feb. 10.

“Maria was a friend,” Fess said about her interest in the volunteer position. “My son, Jared, was in the same class as Basil (LaBarbera’s son). Over the last three years, since we’ve been here, I got to know her. I thought a lot of her as a mom, wife and participant in the community.”

LaBarbera survived breast cancer only to get leukemia that left her nearly blind and deaf before the Naples mother of three passed. The 50-year-old was survived by her husband, Ken, and children, Lorena, Peter and Basil, who were 14, 11 and 8 at the time of her death.

The school board has 90 days after announcing an opening to fill the vacancy, Bartling said. He doesn’t expect the board to make a decision until its March 10 meeting.

“They may interview (the applicants) and wait until the March meeting to make an appointment,” Bartling said.

A native of New York, Fess spent part of her life growing up in western Pennsylvania, where she graduated from high school. She earned a degree in hotel restaurant administration from University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and worked in restaurant management for about 12 years. Fess and her family moved to Boundary County three years ago.

Her sons Jacob, 11, and Jared, 8, attend Naples Elementary School. Fess and her husband, Dirk, also have a 20-month-old son, Jesse.

Fess believes the biggest challenge facing the school district is the economy.

“That will be the biggest  thing . . . to try not to let education suffer as a result of that,” she said.