Eugenie “Genie” Wysocki has lived in Macomb County all her life. She grew up in Mount Clemens and now lives in Chesterfield on the border of New Baltimore. She loves the areas she has lived in because of the close proximity to a historical downtown area and parks.
She is a proud girl mom of Maddelyn, 13, and Eisley, 3, and wife of Jason. She is self-employed at a swimming pool service company, Genie’s Pool Service, which she made a full-time thing in YEAR. As if she already isn’t busy enough, she is a full-time student at Macomb Community College studying psychology.
One thing Wysocki loves is living in Macomb County. We reached out to learn what makes Macomb County so special to her and her family.
What makes Macomb County great?
“I love Macomb County because we have access to water and often canoe,” says Wysocki. “There is a plethora of local beaches, and we are a short drive away from many beautiful beach side camping destinations such as Port Crescent State Park, Lake Port State Park and Forester Campground.”
Living in Macomb County means Wysocki is centrally located and close to free museums and nature centers.
“We are also active members of the Michigan Science Center and have access to accredited museums through their ASTC Travel Passport Program,” she says.
What are some things you do with your family in Macomb County?
“We frequent local down-town areas such as New Baltimore and Mt. Clemens,” says Wysocki. “When I go into town, I am reminded of all the great friendships I have established with locals, local business owners and their long-term friendly staff.”
She is always looking for new (and free) things to do with her family and is grateful that Macomb County offers so much for families to do.
“We recently participated in the Mount Clemens Chili Off, their Fire and Ice Festival and even found a free event within Macomb County where our youngest met Gabby from Gabby’s Dollhouse,” she says.
Since attending Macomb Community College, she has found tons of events through the college, as well. She’s thrilled by these opportunities to dig deeper into her community.
“Macomb Community College also has so many free events and volunteer opportunities,” says Wysocki. “We recently participated in MLK day and I highly recommend our community to become familiar with Student Life at Macomb to find opportunities to give back.”
Setting a good example for her girls
Wysocki has not always had things easy. She explains how she and her oldest daughter grew up together and the positive impact certain people had on her life.
“I went from a struggling single mom who frequented the Macomb Community College food bank to a financially independent business owner,” she explains. “I wanted to provide a stable life for my daughter, and play an active role in her and her friend’s lives, like my role models did for me.”
One of these role models in her life was her swim instructor, Jeff Lepler. He encouraged her to keep herself busy with the swim team to help overcome some of the challenges she faced growing up.
“I swam with the boy’s swim team, and a private sponsor paid for my tuition for the Lakers Swim team in St. Clair Shores,” says Wysocki. “My coach encouraged me to always stay by the water, and I took that very literally.”
That experience impacted her life so much that she pursued her Water Safety Instructor Certification and became a Certified Pool Operator.
“I started the swimming pool service company, with immense support from my prior employers at Viscount Pools,” she says. “They supported my dream and helped me build my clientele and as a single mother at the time, and they really wanted to see us succeed.”
And now, not only is she setting an example for her daughters by being a small business owner, she is now going back to college full time to pursue a career in psychology.
“As a child I grew up around adults that were not always safe and I viewed school as my safe place,” she says. “I used my experience with abuse and trauma to extend support for others within my school.”
She attended Mount Clemens High School her freshman year and then transferred to Chippewa Valley High School her sophomore year. It was at Chippewa Valley that she became the president of “Be The Change Club,” and helped facilitate Challenge Day, which is a workshop event where selected students got to share their personal experiences. It helped build relationships, promoted anti-bullying and focused on peer mediation and problem solving.
“I have always viewed educators with such high esteem, and have always wanted to pay it forward,” she says.
After speaking with her oldest daughter her friends and being like a “therapist” to them, she also confided in them about her dream to work in a school. They encouraged her to go back to school to make it happen.
“I always remind my daughter and her friends that school is often a safe place for some of their peers, and it is always a good idea to offer friendship and support,” she says. “You never know what others are going through.”
For more information on living and learning in Macomb County, visit Make Macomb Your Home. Find more articles like this at Metro Parent’s A Family Guide to Macomb County.