GILROY
– George Minerva has lived in Gilroy for 25 years but still
considers himself the new guy in town.
GILROY – George Minerva has lived in Gilroy for 25 years but still considers himself the new guy in town.
“Many residents have been here longer than me,” he said. “I do remember driving through Gilroy as a kid. I remember the Bucking Bronco sign. It seemed to take hours to get through Gilroy back then.”
Minerva grew up on the Monterey Peninsula as the son of a military doctor. He went to college in Los Angeles but returned to Central California – to Gilroy – to raise a family.
Minerva was the pastor at Gilroy Presbyterian Church for many years. When he turned 40, he decided to change careers.
“It was time for a change. I wanted to do something I really loved. So I went back to get my second master’s (degree) and became a marriage and family therapist,” Minerva said.
He had his own practice in Gilroy for eight and half years and now works for Kaiser’s Gilroy office in the Adult Psychiatry Department.
“Gilroy is very fortunate to have such a good hospital in the area. Did you know every third person in Gilroy uses the Kaiser facility?” he asked. “I like the hospital setting; I have formed close relationships with the medical doctors. I wouldn’t find that in a larger setting. Even though Gilroy is growing, it still retains that small town sense of community.”
His first job as a marriage and family therapist was with Community Solutions, a South County nonprofit organization.
“I rose up through the ranks to become the executive director,” he said. “When I got tired of being ‘the boss,’ I went back to being a counselor.”
He’s still involved with Community Solutions as an intern adviser.
Minerva attributes the success of changing careers to his wife and family.
“I have a very supportive family. I owe my wife, Vicki, a great debt,” he said. “She stood by me.”
Vicki Minerva also is a therapist in the area. Their two daughters are in high school, one is a junior and one is a senior.
“We have two very great ladies who like us,” Minerva said. “We spend time around the dinner table talking about all kinds of stuff. We have busy lives, and we need concentrated time alone with each other. We make dates and take family vacations. We may not agree to belly button piercing, but we all talk about things.”
For people who haven’t met Minerva at the grocery story, or at school functions, or at church, they probably have had their food cooked by him in Gourmet Alley at the Garlic Festival. He has been cooking up food and support for local charities for more than 15 years.
“I’m co-chairing this year’s Alley with Greg Bozzo, but it’s my second time as chair. I was asked to step back in, and it’s a worthwhile event. Our nonprofit, Community Solutions, benefits from the fund raising at the Garlic Festival.”
Minerva likes helping people, a trait that was instilled in him by his doctor father.
“I’ve only worked in a ‘for profit’ setting for two years of my life. I realize I have a missionary zeal to be involved and to give back to the community,” he said. “My dad preached that, and I saw him as a medical missionary. He handed down the desire to me to help people better their lives.”
In his spare time, Minerva likes to get up early to read and he plays bass for the Corvairs, a ’50s and ’60s band made up of Gilroy residents. They practice weekly.
“I played piano as a kid, but when my grandfather bought me a guitar I was hooked,” he said. “I’ve been in a band ever since.
“We’re the Corvairs because we’re not good enough to be the Corvettes,” he laughed. “Listen, it’s good cheap weekly therapy. We have formed great relationships. Some of members have known each other for 15 to 20 years. And as the drummer, Gary Lafaille, likes to say, ‘We’re unsafe on any stage.’ ”
