News 12 visited with the Woodbury Town Supervisor-elect Kate Luciani's five children – Roland, the youngest; Meadow, the artist; Jax, the gamer; Paisley, the entertainer; and Fisher, the oldest – about why their mother is primed to begin leading the town of about 12,000 people.

Meadow agreed her mother has intangibles such as resilience, courage and organization to run the town because "she has five kids," she said with a giggle.

"I'm proud of her for being our mom," she added.

Luciani will leave her post as Woodbury town council member to begin a two-year term as town supervisor next week.

She will be sworn in at 12:01 a.m. Monday, just as the new year arrives.

She has led several local humanitarian projects, including several during the COVID-19 pandemic to help local parents and businesses.

"I started my community group, We Are Woodbury, because a lot of moms had reached out," Luciani said, sitting on an ottoman in the living room with Roland diving onto the couch behind her. "People were stressed out, and they were stuck in the house with their children. We decided to get people together in the community to do different projects."

We Are Woodbury took on several community ventures, including vacant home cleanouts, decoration of struggling businesses and even a cemetery rehab.

Paisley, age 7, understands and appreciates how dizzying her mother's schedule already is, before even taking office at Town Hall.

Formerly a firefighter recruiter, Luciani currently works in hospitality and spent much of 2023 campaigning and doing community service.

"She really helps the town, and she greets people at [the] Rushmore [Estate], and she really helps people," Paisley said between cartwheels.

"She does such a good job. She helps a lot of people," Jax said. "The library, the animal shelter, she just does a bunch of good things for people."

As town supervisor, Luciani will likely have to draw on her experience as a mediator.

A few issues – such as the imminent start of recreational cannabis sales and concerns over population surges in surrounding communities – have brought on uncomfortable conversations among community members and local officials.

Luciani said she plans to address those issues head-on in town-sponsored forums.

"I think the most important thing is to have open meetings and open dialogue," she said as Paisley staked out a resting spot on her lap. "And let everybody speak together about what it is they want here in the community."

On the upswing now, Luciani's journey in politics has had its low moments, particularly the heartbreak after the 2022 election to represent the area in the state Assembly.

Luciani, a Republican, lost the race to Democrat Chris Eachus by eight votes, earning respect from her Republican colleagues and Eachus.

She rebounded this year in the supervisor election, soundly defeating her incumbent opponent.

"I am looking forward to working with Kate as town supervisor of the Town of Woodbury," he said by email Friday evening. "Together we can do great things together for the town residents. Congratulations to Kate and we wish her the best of luck in all her endeavors."

Fisher, the oldest, has helped his mother on past campaigns, out on the trail in 2022 when she ran for Assembly, and at home watching his siblings in 2023 so she could devote more time to the campaign for town supervisor.

"She kind of just showed us all that no matter what, nothing is impossible," Fisher said. "If you set your mind to it, you can make it work. I would have never guessed that she'd be in this position a few years ago. Now looking back, it's amazing, the steps that she took and the things that she did to get to where she is now."