Facilitators

Carol Dwyer

Carol has been involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® for over 20 years. In the early years she was a participant with her two children and was grateful for the support and friendship that she received during the program. She completed both the Teacher Training Workshop and the Training the Teacher Workshop and became a Program Facilitator and a Trainer. She currently facilitates programs in the St. John’s area and works as a Mentor to Family Resource Centre staff across NL.

Carol shares the Co-Executive Director position of the Newfoundland and Labrador Parent-Child Mother Goose Program,® Incorporated with Chantal Rodgers.

Chantal Rodgers

Carol Dwyer

Chantal was introduced to the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® in 2005 when she began attending with her four children. The support and experiences her family received were invaluable and inspired her to stay connected with the program. She became a Mother Goose Facilitator in 2008, and a Trainer in 2016. Chantal and colleague Carol Dwyer were instrumental in incorporating the Newfoundland and Labrador Parent-Child Mother Goose Program,® Incorporated. She is Co-Executive Director of the corporation and also runs Mother Goose programs in the St. John’s area. Chantal can be found happily singing rhymes and songs all around Newfoundland and Labrador.

Alisa Cutler

Carol Dwyer

Alisa Cutler

Alisa has been working with young children and families for over thirty years. She is ECE certified and has a strong interest in perinatal mental health as well as a love of language and child development. Alisa was mentored by Carol Dwyer back in 2010 and has been facilitating Parent-Child Mother Goose Programs® since then. The program ties in strongly with her passions as it promotes peer to peer support, friendships, child bonding and the love of language. Alisa has two adult children who say she has a song about everything!

Jessie Cahill

Alisa Cutler

Jessie has been involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® as a participant since Spring 2022. She has loved participating in the baby and toddler programs with her two children and is excited to be involved as a Facilitator Apprentice. She has worked with people of all ages in the library and archive field in St. John’s for the past ten years. Jessie holds a B.A. (2013), B.Ed. (2014), and M.Ed. (2020) from Memorial University of Newfoundland and is currently working towards her MLIS from the University of Alberta. She is excited to continue being involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® as a Facilitator Apprentice working with families and young children, and as a mama of two!

Tasha Power

Jessie Cahill

Tasha Power

Tasha has been involved with the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® since September 2022. She is currently a full-time student studying Child and Youth Care at Keyin College in St. John's, NL. Tasha is an advocate for the importance of healthy attachments between caregivers and children.
She works directly with the families as a Program Facilitator and also provides support to ongoing programs.

Apprentices

Nailah Afridi

Nailah joined the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® in March 2023. After spending the last few years in the Middle East teaching ESL, she is now raising her family here in St. John’s, NL. Nailah is a volunteer in the community and has facilitated many meet ups for new immigrants and university students. She enjoys interacting with children of all ages and learning from them through conversation and experiences.

Amy Spector

Nailah Afridi

Amy has been involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® as a participant since the winter of 2022. Having attended both the baby and toddler programs, with her two children, Amy has fallen in love with program and has become passionate about helping other families develop a sense of community. Amy is originally from Chicago, where she earned her BA in Dance, and has been teaching dance (creative movement, ballet, jazz, modern, and contemporary) and choreographing for the last 20 years. She has taught kids as young as 18 months all the way up to 18+ years, and loves working with children of all ages. Amy is beyond excited to start her journey as a Mother Goose facilitator apprentice, and to connect with families and young children!

Support Staff

Bayan Mazaida

Eve Rodgers

Maria Mills

Bayan Mazaida holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering. As a proud mother of two, she has a deep passion for fostering meaningful connections with children of all ages. In February 2025, Bayan will join the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program, where she will contribute her skills and enthusiasm to support families in fostering early literacy, connection, and communication.

Maria Mills

Eve Rodgers

Maria Mills

Maria has been involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® for many years as she attended as a participant when she was just a toddler.

She recently graduated from Memorial University and plans to do Education in Fall 2024. She is happy to be supporting families during the programs and really enjoys interacting with the children.

Eve Rodgers

Chafika Ellis

Eve has been involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® since she was a little girl attending with her mom and dad. She began working with the program in 2021, and as been filling a support role ever since.

Eve is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Nursing at Memorial University of NL. She loves working with children and families at the program.

Chafika Ellis

Chafika is a mother of three beautiful children. She started going to the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program® when her oldest was a few months old and has been attending ever since.

Over the last nine years she has learned so much about how to connect and bond with parents and their children. Chafika is an amazing listener and shoulder to lean on and is a great addition to our support staff.

Omobola Fatimoh Adeyemo

Chafika Ellis

Nadira Binte Sohel

Omobola Fatimoh Adeyemo is currently a program support person at the Parent-Child Mother Goose program® for the 2024 / 2025 academic year. A dedicated mother of three and a finance expert with over 12 years of industry experience in Finance and Accounting. Omobola is currently pursuing a graduate degree in Business Administration at Memorial University of Newfoundland while also enhancing her skills in early childhood education course with AECENL. Her diverse educational and professional journey reflects her commitment to blending financial expertise with a passion for nurturing early childhood development.

Nadira Binte Sohel

Chafika Ellis

Nadira Binte Sohel

Nadira has experience in Early Childhood Education and curriculum development from Bangladesh, where she worked as an Assistant Teacher. Nadira also promoted age-appropriate books for children and raised awareness for reading as a moderator at a kids' bookstore. Now living in St. John’s, NL, she is passionate about creating fun and engaging learning experiences for young children. Nadira loves working with kids, sharing stories and learning from them every day. For her, working with children is both a challenge and a joy.

Volunteers

Edwina Mills

Edwina taught students from grades 1 - 9 throughout her 38 years as a teacher. Having recently retired, she is happy to be contributing to the education of children through the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program®. This is her first year as a volunteer for the program.

Erica Shea

Edwina Mills

Erica originally came from Hong Kong and has been in St. John's since 2004. She graduated with a Bachelor's of Commerce (Co-op) program from MUN in 2011.

She is a proud mom of two children. Erica has been involved in the Parent-Child Mother Goose program as a participant since Fall 2022 with her youngest child. She says " It has been a absolutely joyful experience to bond with my son during the program. It is also wonderful seeing other children and parents connecting and growing with each other"

Erica is very happy to serve our community with the Parent-Child Mother Goose Program®.