Marissa’s dream of building a childcare center grew out of her own experience with having children in daycare. Her observation of daycare centers was that there was unending possibility to strengthen families, build connections and encourage children at the youngest possible ages to become stewards of their communities. Marissa visualized an early education center as being a hub where children and families can join together with educators to encourage social, emotional and developmental growth of children. Marissa holds a commitment to bringing parents and caregivers on board to play an integral part of the learning process.
Marissa currently resides in Gorham Maine with her husband who is a Middle School Science Teacher and their two boys. She spends most of her free time exploring, singing, creating and laughing as much as possible.
…her Mother ran a non-profit for much of her teen years for adults with disabilities. She also worked in college for the Bangor YMCA working in the before/after care with children.
Meghann graduated in 2005 from the University of Maine with a degree in Sociology. She was a member of the Green Campus Coalition and has always strived towards a more sustainable life. A couple years later, Meghann acquired her culinary degree from the New England Culinary Institute. She then moved to Colorado and became the Director of Admissions at Cook Street School of Culinary Arts. In Colorado, she was involved with Slow Foods Denver and was heavily involved in their School Garden Project. She spent a lot of her free time building vegetable gardens at various schools in the greater Denver area.
Most recently, Meghann worked for six years here in Maine for a chiropractor where she really took her passion for nutrition to the next level. She is currently pursuing a Certificate in Nutrition from the International Foundation of Nutrition & Health. The chiropractor, she worked for eventually deferred to Meghann for patient supplement needs and nutrition evaluations.
When her first son was born and they started introducing food, Meghann started a blog called “Feeding Bebe” where she explored supporting his development through food with all of you! She has always involved him in food preparation. She has challenged herselt to create food that is both delicious and nutritious. She is now using what she’s learned while just introducing her 5-month-old to food for the first time. Meghann look forward to taking this passion of hers and working on food fears or aversions with your kiddos! She is also very excited to use their incredible green house to teach Seedlings to Sunflower’s children about the life cycle and teach them how to get in the dirt with all of the plants.
Meghan shares a home in Westbrook with her husband Donny, who is a Chef and their two boys. They love to be outdoors as much as possible with their kiddos.
…as running her classroom for the past two years there. Charlotte is CPR/First-Aid Certified and a Level 4 on Maine Roads to Quality. Her and her husband have two wonderful kiddos, an 8-year-old girl, a one-year-old boy and a dog!
I’m excited to be coming to Seedlings to Sunflowers because I love to watch children grow and learn using hands on experiences! I also love to give children, even during infancy the chance to learn through exciting sensory activities.
During my free time with my family we enjoy all the natural wonders of Maine! Hiking, swimming at Sebago, camping, gardening at home, and just relaxing with each other!”
overseeing 22 various volunteer programs and their leaders.
She has an extensive background in online marketing from account management, brand and media, consulting, website and graphic design, social media marketing, as well as photo shoot design and styling. Caitlin is currently the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of modernsanctuary.life, where she oversees all facets of her business and online presence.
She is thrilled to be able to bring her marketing, media, design and volunteer programming expertise to the board of Seedlings to Sunflowers. Being a part of a non-profit dedicated to cultivating a lifelong commitment to positive educational experiences for children is an amazing honor. She is thrilled to serve alongside caring, creative, intelligent and passionate individuals whose mission is to help carry out the vision of this wonderful, innovative school.
Caitlin would be overjoyed to send her future children to Seedlings to Sunflowers – a place where she knows they would thrive and where her family would feel supported by their loving community.
Ever since she was a little girl, Shana knew she wanted to be a teacher. Playing “school” in her basement playroom was just the beginning of her teaching journey…
…of education and in 2011 received a Masters Degree in Teaching from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR.
Beth has taught elementary school in several states including 4th and 5th grade at Cedaroak Park Primary School in West Linn Oregon, Kindergarten-2nd grade at Lewis & Clark Elementary School in Missoula, Montana, and 4th and 5th grade for Learning Works afterschool at East End Community School in Portland, Maine. For the past few years she has been a private childcare provider for 4 wonderful children ages 21 months to 11 years. Beth is very excited and honored to be part of the Seedlings to Sunflowers community and looks forward to helping support lifelong learners and their families.
In her spare time, she enjoys being with her adorably French husband and their adorably lanky Jack Russell, Gary. She loves being outside and adores hiking, running and spending the summers swimming at her parent’s camp on Little Sebago Lake. She is also eagerly anticipating the arrival of their daughter who is due any day now!
Beth is beyond thrilled to be teaching at Seedlings to Sunflowers and is greatly looking forward to meeting her new students and their families.
In her free time, Marissa loves exploring the near by woods with her two boys ages 2 and 5. Thanks to them she has become an expert bug catcher and is mildly impressive with a butterfly net. Marissa looks forward to sharing her love of learning with her students.
Of Italian heritage, Teresa comes from a long line of people who love to feed people. Her family runs and cooks for the Italian Bazaar in Portland each year. Teresa loves being a part of the Seedlings to Sunflowers Community and is so happy to fill our kiddo’s and staff’s bellies with delicious and nutritious home-cooked food…
Michelle lives in Gorham with her 3 boys, 1 nephew and her 3 fur babies.
Teresa resides in Windham with her husband, Joe and her 2 sons, Sam & Rowan.
Alicia has 2 sons, Noah (9) and Ezra (1) and loves being a mother and spending time with her family! Working with children has always been Alicia’s passion and she’s honored to be surrounded by such an amazing group every day!
Lucica is thrilled to be a part of the Seedlings to Sunflowers community and working with her fellow team members. In her spare time, Lucica likes to go to the beach, hang out with her friends, go biking and hiking and just be outside.
Seedling to Sunflowers’ approach to teaching through nature-based learning is what drew her to make the move from her current center. She loves the idea of a center that is more than just a daycare but a community. She’s a firm believer in “It takes a village” and is honored to be a part of the Seedlings to Sunflowers’ village. It’s exciting to see a new and much needed change of direction in center-based care and Sarah is so honored and excited to be able to be a part of it!
As well as being a teacher, Sarah is a mother of 3. She is excited for her 2 younger kids, Camden and Shea to also get the opportunity to join the Seedlings to Sunflowers’ community. When not at work, Sarah loves to spend as much time as possible with her family. They love to travel, spend time at the beach and parks – pretty much anything outside! Sarah looks forward to getting to know you all and thanks you in advance for the chance to be a part of your little ones journeys through childhood.
Radhika moved to the United States after she got married to her husband 8 years ago. She is blessed with a beautiful six years old girl…
As a certifying Postpartum Doula and holistic mama, Khaila will also be able to support our families as more than a teacher. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, crafting, camping, and soaking up the sun with her two year old son.
Radhika has always loved traveling, meeting people, engaging in conversations and learning. She loves to draw and paint in her free time. Road trips are her and her family’s favorite thing to do together.
She is really excited and looking forward to being a part of the Seedlings to Sunflowers family. Engaging the children with hands on activities in the classroom is something that she is thrilled about as it helps them connect with real life things.
Karen and her husband have three girls ages 13, 10 and 2. She enjoys spending her free time with her family. They love the outdoors going hunting, fishing/ice fishing, snowmobiling, riding ATV’s, swimming and the list goes on. Karen is also very involved with her children’s education and extra-curricular activities volunteering both in the classroom and on the field. She is overjoyed to have her youngest daughter be apart of such a wonderful and supportive community here at Seedlings to Sunflowers and looks forward to what the future holds for her here.
As her schooling came to a close, Courtney found mental health to be the direction in which she wanted to take her professional career. She became a counselor in a residential treatment home in the Portland area that offered therapeutic support for teens and their families. Here, she began gaining her skills in the mental health field and discovered her desire to work with younger children. Courtney also knew a nature-based and conscious learning model was important to her, which brought her to Seedlings to Sunflowers!
With a passion for education and health/wellness, Caroline is excited to work with Seedlings to Sunflowers’ kids!
…for quality education started during her college work study but really grew after she graduated and worked for a nonprofit with children with developmental delays. During her time there she had an incredible mentor who taught her the amazing ways that a classroom can include all of the tools that young children need to flourish and grow.
Before her current position she helped open a preschool that focused on learning with the mind and body. She played an active role in creating the curriculum, classroom scheduling and set up, daily structure, etc. She worked with that center for 6 years as both an educator and the Assistant Director. This position allowed her to gain knowledge as both an educator as well as an administrator in the field. As a resident of Gorham and an early childhood educator she is very excited to lend her knowledge to Seedlings to Sunflowers and help create an amazing learning based center for Gorham.
This is where her inspiration and passion for teaching started. She received her Bachelor’s Degree from Wheaton College and Master’s from Lesley University. Erica’s education and teaching experience has given her a solid foundation to build her career upon. She is honored and humbled to be working with such an incredible group of women that are so devoted to children and families.
…nurse manager for child and adolescent services at Spring Harbor Hospital. Jennifer appreciates the importance of experiential learning, family and the impact positive role models can have on a child’s development. Jennifer resides in her hometown of Gorham with her husband and two young daughters and is hopeful to send her youngest daughter to Seedlings to Sunflowers!
…Brandeis University and her law degree from Boston University School of Law, she began her legal career clerking for the Maine Superior Court and went on to represent indigent clients, prior to becoming a prosecutor in 2013. Having participated in the system from all sides, Frayla has a unique perspective. She would like to see the criminal justice system become more equitable, reserving incarceration for perpetrators of violent criminal conduct and an increase in diversion and treatment for lower level offenders.