About Us

I have been an Ellington resident for 33 years.  My wife Beth and I are empty-nesters and have two grown children.

I work in the Information Technology field.  I recently took an early retirement package but continue to work part-time in IT.

I am an active member of the Ellington Congregational Church.  I am currently chairing our Open and Affirming Committee, which is a process at the end of which our church will decide whether to affirm the full inclusion of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender and non-binary persons (LGBTQ) in the church's life and ministry.  One would wish that such a process would be unnecessary but in many religious traditions, implicit or explicit exclusion of various groups, particularly the LBGTQ+ community, is the norm.

I’m particularly interested in how we engage the community and community organizations in being a part of our mission.

Multiracial mom, wife, sister, daughter, educator, leader, advocate.  Growing up in a loving, close knit multiracial family means equity work is crucial, important work that has been a lifelong passion of mine. Equity work is not a job for me, it is who I am, it is ingrained in all that I do both inside and out of the classroom.  Active member of Teacher Leader Fellowship Program at CCSU,  teacher of 20 years, Teacher of the Year for Tolland district (2014-15).

I am a Hoosier by birth, and a Yankee by choice, having lived in New England the past 40+ years, successfully transferring my allegiance from the Chicago Cubs to the Boston Red Sox. I am a voracious reader and intensely curious about our world. As a life-long public servant and educator, I am most recently retired as principal of Center School. Through that work, I have come to deeply respect the people of this community. Since my retirement, I have been looking for an avenue by which I can continue to make a difference for the Town of Ellington. Diversity and inclusion speak to my purpose and personal values. You will find me respectful of all persons. Listening without judgment, speaking with intention not impulse, focusing on the situation rather than the person(s) or collective emotions, being empathetic, and welcoming all voices to the conversation are values I hold dear. Together we have some challenging but exciting work to bring our mission statement to fruition.

“I believe it's our responsibility to show our communities the value of all people, to celebrate different, and to take a stand for acceptance and inclusion.” – Julie Foudy, Olympian and FIFA Champion

I was born in London, England and moved to the United States when I was 18 years old to live with my father, step mother and younger sister.  After being here for a while and not being able to work, I decided to go back to school.  I applied to Greater Hartford Community College, (that is what it was called back then). I worked on my Associate degree and in 1986 I graduated with an Associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education. After graduating from GHCC things were not going very well with my family so I moved out and moved in with a girlfriend.  I found jobs cleaning houses. At one point I was working four different jobs to make ends meet.  As the years went by things started looking up for me, or so I thought.  I got married.  In the beginning I thought I was in heaven until the abuse started and going to the hospital was a monthly occurrence, but although my home life was a nightmare, my work life was good. After three years I finally got the courage to leave the marriage and get a divorce, again my life was looking bright.

I met my second husband at Travelers Insurance Company, we became very good friends then got married. I went back to school and received my undergraduate degree in Psychology and my Master's degree in Social Work.  After receiving my Master’s degree, I worked as a Therapist with convicted sex offenders, I also worked with Elementary aged children who confided in someone that they had been sexually abused. I interviewed the child who was the accuser and the person who was the accused. I would then write a report which would then be passed onto the Department of Children and Families.  

After seven years of marriage my husband and I had a son, at which point we moved to Ellington.  After having my son, I decided to stay home with him.  When my son was old enough to go to Elementary school I decided to volunteer in his classroom.  Once he got old enough, he decided that he did not want me in his classroom anymore so I applied for a job at Crystal Lake school as a Cafeteria and Playground Aide.  After a number of years, I wanted to do more, so I went for a position as a Paraprofessional working with students who had special needs.  I worked with two students doing various things with them inside and outside of the classroom. Then before I knew it the years had gone by and one of my students was old enough to move onto Windermere.   I worked with my other student for a number of years at Crystal Lake.  Then due to the lack of a P. A. L room at Crystal Lake my student and I were transferred to Windermere School. My time working with my student at Windermere came to an end due to my having severe back problems which caused me to end up on disability.  

My family and I have lived in Ellington for 20 years.  As mentioned before, a number of those years were working in the Ellington school system from Aide to Paraprofessional.  Those years getting to know the students and their parents gave me a great deal of joy.   Now meeting and working with people who are willing to try hard to help the citizens of Ellington expand their viewpoints on its diverse community is not only important to me but enriching.

I am a lifelong Ellington resident with the exception of 13 years spent in Virginia where I started my career in education.  While in Virginia I was a special education teacher, then moved into the role of Assistant Principal and ultimately Principal of an elementary school.  Family reasons brought me back to Ellington, CT in 2011.  Since being back I have worked for Ellington Public Schools in the role of Supervisor of Special Services.  I have a daughter who attends Center School and she is in first grade.  I am thrilled to be acting as the EPS liaison for this committee.  I am deeply committed to the mission of this committee and look forward to working collaboratively with everyone.