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.
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 is overjoyed to have her children attending Seedlings to Sunflowers – a place where they thrive and where her family feels supported by their loving community.
Her family runs and cooks for the Italian Bazaar in Portland each year. Teresa loves being a part of the Seedlings to Sunflowers Community! She resides in Windham with her husband, Joe and her 2 sons, Sam & Rowan.
…water safety certified as well! I have a very bubbly and expressive personality and love to talk to anyone and everyone, so make sure to say hi! I am so excited to be apart of this amazing opportunity that has really truly turned into a family and I am so grateful for it!
…finishing my last semester before getting my Bachelor’s Degree. I plan to enroll in a Masters Program in either Early Childhood Education or Social Work next year. I’ve worked as a substitute and lead teacher in an outreach program in Portland for 6 years, and as a CNA on a long-term dementia unit for 12 years. I have been at S2S since Spring of 2020, and I just love the nature-based family atmosphere!
…kiddos – both outside and in a classroom. When I’m not at work, I can be found in nature, spending time with my family, reading, playing music and/or doing an art project (sometimes all at the same time!). I am here to grow and learn alongside the kids, and I couldn’t be happier.
Her favorite part of being a teacher is watching the excitement on a child’s face when they can do something on their own for the first time.
In her free time, Amanda likes to spend time with her husband, best friend and pets. She has 2 cats, a bunny, a parakeet and an African Grey Parrot. She enjoys going to the movies, the ocean, roller skating and going to concerts.
…maybe one day travel to a developing country and spend some time teaching there!
Co-Teacher in the Sprouts Room. Her goal is to provide a safe, healthy, and nurturing environment for children and families to feel welcome. Michelle lives in Gorham with her 3 boys, 1 nephew and her 3 fur babies.
Alicia has 2 sons, Noah (9) and Ezra (1) and loves being a mother and spending time with her family!…
I am a certified herbalist and will be a advanced herbalist Fall 2021 where I will be able to take on patients. I love foraging for wild herbs and mushrooms. I make my medicinal teas, creams, salves, tinctures…
Working with children has always been Alicia’s passion and she’s honored to be surrounded by such an amazing group every day!
…and I also infuse my own oils. Aside from herbalism, I am an outdoor enthusiast! I like to study weather and I am also a local weather watcher for channel 13 and NOAA. I love storm chasing!
I enjoy many outdoor activities! love camping, kayaking, biking, and photography just to name a few. Camping is one of my favorite things to do! My son and I also like to camp out in the backyard a lot just for fun! My favorite place to camp is Lily Bay State Park on Moosehead Lake, where I was a campground host/volunteer for 5 years. My son and I go up as much as we can in Spring, Summer and Fall. We enjoy bombing around the dirt roads looking for moose and other wildlife.
I also enjoy hunting and fishing. I like to hunt deer, grouse, and moose! I harvested my first moose back in 201 weighing almost 800 lbs. Even though I am a hunter, I do love and appreciate wildlife. I have many deer that visit my yard daily; I live on the reserve, so I can’t hunt them, but I am able to watch and learn from them. My family and friends call me Snow White because I always seem to make friends with many animals. I have one deer friend at Lily Bay that I have bonded with over the past 5 years where I am able to pet and feed her out of my hand. She’s even given me a kiss.
This is my first time in the childcare field and I’ve been enjoying it so much! The kids make me laugh and smile. Even on an off-day, the always seem to make it better!
Radhika moved to the United States after she got married to her husband 8 years ago. She is blessed with a beautiful daughter…
…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.
excited to watch the kids in my new classroom learn and grow. I look forward to letting them explore and creating different projects to help their development. I like to think of myself as a compassionate, patient, responsible, determined person. I’m an old soul in a young person’s body. I am an only child, so I hope to have lots of children. I love living in a state where we are fortunate enough to experience all four seasons. I was born here and I don’t think I will ever live somewhere else.
…why I feel very lucky yo be interning at Seedlings to Sunflowers. Whether I am spending the day in the Nursery or in Pre-K, I know it’s going to be a day full of learning and laughing, and I could not be more grateful to be apart of a community as supportive and inspiring as this one!
…the beach, or hiking mountains! I feel so fortunate to be part of such a loving, welcoming, inclusive community. I look forward to learning, growing and working with your kids!
…the external growth of a child but also the internal growth. By providing a safe space for children to play, learn, and grow while also attending to the children’s emotional and social development, I believe that Seedlings to Sunflowers empowers the children in their care to fully express themselves in creative, special, and unique ways.
…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.