Rey Garofano immigrated from Iran to Los Angeles in the mid-1980s, seeking safety from the Islamic regime and the Iran-Iraq War. After working in several Northeast cities, she made Vermont her home in 2005 and has served as a public servant with the State since 2006.
Elected to the Vermont House of Representatives in 2022, Rey serves as Vice Chair of the House Human Services Committee. Her legislative work focuses on expanding access to affordable early childhood education, strengthening systems that serve the most vulnerable Vermonters, and promoting government oversight and accountability.
Rey’s professional background includes roles in health care, affordable housing, homelessness, and early childhood education. She currently works in the Child Development Division, where she focuses on policies that ensure young children have access to high-quality care and education. She also leads efforts across the Department for Children and Families to advance equity, remove structural barriers, and promote meaningful inclusion.
Deeply committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, Rey has supported racial equity efforts in the Essex community for over a decade. She brings both lived experience and deep knowledge of state systems to her work on behalf of Vermont families.
Rey holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Champlain College and certificates in Trauma-Informed Practice (UVM) and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace (USF). She lives in Essex with her husband, daughter, and their Portuguese Water Dog, Tilly.
