Filip Galiza, his wife Carolyn, and his daughters Maya, 4 and  Alphea, 1 month, take full advantage of what the Reading community has to offer.

Moving here a year and a half ago from Yonkers, N.Y., the Galiza's rent an apartment in the historic district of Reading.

While Galiza owns WebPageCreation.org, Carolyn serves as an Anesthesiologist at Lawrence General Hospital. 

Choosing between Andover and Reading, he said they found that Reading was not only more affordable, but had more of a community feeling. He also liked living closer to Boston.

Born and raised in Poland, Galiza met his wife, who was from Hawaii, at Cornell University. Married for 11 years, the couple has lived in Hawaii, Pittsburg, PA and New York City.

"I see Reading as a final stop for a while," Galiza said. "I like to take advantage of what the community offers."

His daughter Maya enjoys the programs at the library, the YMCA, and they have been to the all of the parks in the town.

"We meet a lot of people at the parks," he said.  

He explained that this was important because it is more difficult to meet people while living in an apartment building.

"We also like walking around,"he said. Galiza explained it is a 30-minute walk to town, and he and his family had a great time at the Reading Fall Street Faire in September.

After living near New York City, Galiza said he is excited that he can find parking anywhere in town. He and his wife also like going into Boston. Describing a typical excursion , Galiza said they first enjoy breakfast at the Swiss Bakers, then hop on the train to Boston.

Having lived in many places, Galiza said he has always bought tourist books to discover secret treasures, like small art museums.

As a web designer, Galiza works out of his home.  

"I have always had clients scattered all over the world," he explained.  

Although his website is only seven years old, Galiza said he started a free lancer when he lived in Hawaii.  

While working at his first job out of school at a mutual fund company, the investment director asked him to create a website and he accepted the challenge.

"I remember sitting at Borders and Barnes and Nobles reading books to teach myself how to design websites, " he said.  

Then he took on more and more clients through referrals.  

"It became my calling," he explained.

He communicates with his clients via internet and phone, and they are able to email their content and photos to him.

Galiza said he likes his flexible schedule, and he can see his family becoming more and more a part of the Reading community.

"We hope to buy a home here, soon," he said.