GILROY
– Erica Romero’s family, the Rizzi family, has been in the
Gilroy area since the turn of the century. Her roots are deep and
her love is strong for a town she wants to call home. But Romero
had a dream many of us would want to come true. She was discovered
by Hollywood.
GILROY – Erica Romero’s family, the Rizzi family, has been in the Gilroy area since the turn of the century. Her roots are deep and her love is strong for a town she wants to call home. But Romero had a dream many of us would want to come true. She was discovered by Hollywood.
“I started acting in the local theater when I was 8 years old,” she said. “My mom was registering my brother for little league, and there was an acting program, so she signed me up for that. I was in the chorus of ‘Once upon a Mattress’ the first year I was acting, and the next year I got the lead in ‘Annie.’ ”
When she was in her junior year at Gilroy High, she found an agent, and the next thing she knew she had done a few national commercials in San Francisco. Then, Hollywood came knocking.
“I took it as just a great opportunity. I was working with people who I had watched on television,” Romero said. “I had parts on ‘My Two Dads’ and ‘Our House.’ But I was homesick for Gilroy. I missed going places where people knew me, and I wanted to do the things my mom and dad had done.”
Her mother was a cheerleader, and her father was on the football team.
Romero returned to Gilroy after one year in Los Angeles, ready to be a typical teen in a community she loves. She did become a cheerleader, was active in her church and was happy to be a part of the community again.
Romero went on to Gavilan College, walking to the campus each day from her home virtually next door. She started dating her future husband at Gavilian, and then moved with him to Albuquerque, N.M. The couple decided to move back to Gilroy three years ago.
“My husband and I run a vending business called Automatic Café, and I’m also a real estate agent. I bought my first house at 19, it was the same price as a car nowadays, but I just love selling houses,” she said. “It started out as something to do on the side as I was raising my three children. It’s so rewarding to help families get into a house of their dreams successfully. There is just so much history, and so much to tell about Gilroy. My great grandparent’s home is on the market, and I got to see the property the other day. The original grape vines they planted are still there. When I have clients who want to relocate to Gilroy, I speak so highly of the city.”
Romero and her husband, David, have three children – 8-year-old Dillon, 4-year-old Eden and 2-year-old Blake.
“Since I grew up here and my husband also has ties here, it was really important for me to be close to my family,” she said. “I’m fortunate not to have my mom and grandmas too far away. With three children, I couldn’t do it without their support.”
David coaches soccer, and their weekends are often spent at the games or at the family cabin in the mountains.
“Our life is full of family times,” Romero said.
“Being from a big Italian family, there is a usually a birthday party every weekend.”
Does she miss the bright lights of L.A.?
“I do miss the theater, and I still have strong bonds with the local theater people,” Romero said. “So when my children get a little older, I’d like to reconnect. I’ve been showing my children the plays, and commercials I’ve been in, and my daughter is a mini version of me. My dream, and I can see it happening, is for my daughter and I to do a play together.
“You know,” she said. “This is just such a great place to live; it really feels like I never left.”
