Who is Mom?

Joyce “Mom” Fasula is the President and CEO of Gerrity’s. That’s’ why Gerrity’s is “Where Mom’s in Charge.” She oversees the entire company and has the final say in every aspect of her family business. This includes the role of spokesperson and more importantly, the person who puts a personal guarantee on everything you buy at Gerrity’s.

Why Mom?

Joyce is a mother and a grandmother. This gives Gerrity’s a big advantage over other grocery stores. In most families, Mom makes or influences most of the buying decisions. As the president of Gerrity’s, Joyce is able to bring her years of experience as a mother into the supermarket operation. She knows what it’s like to be a busy mom who has to get the kids off to school, drive them to soccer practice, buy the groceries and make dinner for the whole family. Very few supermarkets have the benefit of the person in charge knowing what it’s like to be in the shoes of the customer. This close connection to the customer is the reason Gerrity’s began marketing “Mom” in all of our advertising.

What’s Mom’s History?

Joyce was born in 1947 in Scranton. She is a graduate of Maywood University with a Masters in Counseling Education. In 1971, she married Neal Fasula. Joyce became a teacher in North Pocono School District and Neal ran the family business. In 1975, she left teaching to raise their kids, Joe and Neal. She then returned to the teaching profession in 1985 when she took a position at Marywood University.

When Neal passed away in 1997, Gerrity’s was in the process of growing from four stores into nine. As a teacher, Joyce had always been able to stay involved in Gerrity’s on the weekends and during summer and holiday breaks. While she didn’t have day-to-day management experience, she had firsthand knowledge of the grocery operation. More importantly, as a mom, she knew what the primary shopper wanted. With the support of Gerrity’s 1000 employees and managers, Joyce “Mom” Fasula stepped in at CEO and has continued the business where her husband left off. Today Gerrity’s is the largest family owned supermarket business in northeastern Pennsylvania and one of the largest in the country that is owned by a mom.