Member Spotlight: Lia & Tom Higgins
Lia & Tom live in New York City. Lia is a recent member of Spark, though she’s no stranger to the community. Her husband, Tom, was already a member, and through him, and through relationships with other Spark members, Lia had been experiencing the community long before officially joining.
Professionally, Lia has a background in law, having worked as a litigator for years before shifting into writing and content creation. Personally, she’s navigating life in the thick of it: raising young kids, volunteering with organizations like Sanctuary for Families, and stepping more intentionally into her family’s multi-generational office.
Lia's decision to join Spark as a family member wasn’t about access. It was about alignment.
Q: You joined Spark as part of a family membership. What made you want to do this together with Tom?
A: Honestly, I was already benefiting from Spark, indirectly but meaningfully, because of Tom’s involvement. But as we started having more conversations at home about values, legacy, and how we want to structure our family, it became clear that it would be helpful for both of us to be seeing the same things and hearing the same language.
Spark isn’t just a place for investing or deal flow, it’s more nuanced than that. There’s a mentality of team-building and continuity that we’ve identified, and we want to implement that in our own family. We want to include our kids and teach them how to build something with each other, not in isolation.
Q: Has anything shifted for you since joining?
A: I wasn’t really involved in our family office before, mostly due to bandwidth. But Spark has prompted me to pay attention, to continue learning and asking questions, and to participate more actively. The shift has been energizing.
I’ve found myself getting curious about interesting areas, like venture capital in the consumer space or family governance strategy. And the conversations here aren’t surface-level. It’s made me want to bring more of that depth into my own life, and into the work I do with my family.
Q: What would you say to someone who’s considering bringing in a family member?
A: I think you have to know your family. Some people need Spark as a solo space, and I get that. But for people who are building something together, whether it’s a family office, a family business, or a shared vision, it helps to have shared exposure. Otherwise, one person ends up trying to translate everything back, and the message always changes in the retelling.
For us, joining together has created less of a hierarchy and more of a partnership. That’s something we want our kids to see and absorb over time, too.
Editor’s Note:
Lia’s story reflects something we’ve seen quietly but consistently inside Spark: the power of parallel engagement. Families who choose to learn together, not just in theory, but in practice, often uncover new ways to support each other and to structure legacy in real time. These are members who show up not just for themselves, but with a long view on what they’re building. We’re grateful to have Lia and Tom as part of Spark and for the thoughtful way they're modeling partnership.