Meet Our Team
All of our teachers must take at least 16 hours of continuing education in early childhood every year, and all of our lead teachers must have at least 6 months experience in a licensed center.
Ms. Laura
Preschool Director
Ms. Laura has been Preschool Director at our center since 2009 after nearly five years of leading the Early Childhood Ministry of Life Church. She has worked in the Early Childhood field since 1992 in a variety of positions but finds the current one her favorite.
She loves Jesus, her family, and her job, and her passion is supporting young children and their families in their walk with the Lord as they’re introduced to formal schooling. Knowing that learning happens best in the context of a relationship, Laura is excited to be part of this team of women that love Jesus and love children!
Ms. Jenn
Incoming Director
Ms. Jenn has been support staff for Little Blessings since the beginning of 2024 and has recently accepted the Director position. She has experience working with children and families for 18 years. Jenn has a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology and Psychology from Dallas Baptist University, and has used her training in impoverished communities teaching life skills and ministering to families. She's also a certified Missouri teacher and has worked within the Special Education team in the Lee's Summit school district for two years before having her third child. She was the Children's Pastor at Overflow Church in Grand Prairie, TX for 2 1/2 years and is currently serving as the Early Childhood/Welcome Coordinator here at LifeMission Church.
Jenn has lived in the KC metro since 2007 with her husband, Dalton, and their three children. Jenn and Dalton have been attending LifeMission Church since 2022. Their middle child attended Little Blessings for a couple of years and is now in Elementary school.
In Jenn's spare time you can find her spending time with her family, going to the farmers market, gardening, and enjoying her evenings on her back deck with her husband. She is grateful for the many blessings in her life including being a part of the LifeMission Church and Little Blessings team!
Ms. Melanie
Administrative Assistant
Ms. Melanie has been a part of LifeMission since 2014 and Little Blessings since 2019 when she first joined as a support staff. In 2021 she attended CFNI (Christ For The Nations) focusing on Children and Family studies.
She loves Jesus and has a heart to connect others to him. Little Blessings has taught her to create a safe environment to nurture and let others grow into who they were created to be. Coming from a family of teachers Little Blessings feels like a natural place to be. Ms. Melanie loves spending time serving families as Doula, with her family, and friends.
Ms. Melanie is excited to be back from CFNI and ready to serve the Little Blessings Family as the Administrative Assistant.
Ms. Christina
Assistant Director and Lead Teacher
Ms. Christina began at Little Blessings in the Fall of 2010 and has been leading the 3-4 year old classroom for most of that time.
She is a very compassionate and loving teacher who provides a perfect balance of nurture and structure, providing children with a solid foundation and helping them to develop social-emotional awareness in her classroom is very important to her.
Since her time at Little Blessings she has had opportunities to grow as a teacher and expand her knowledge on how to effectively connect with children on their level. One effective resource our center uses is TBRI (Trust-Based Relational Intervention). With TBRI she has had the opportunity to lead Nurture Groups with children outside our center that have experienced trauma and helped them practice TBRI principles in a safe, fun environment while their parents learn effective parenting skills. TBRI has been a game-changer for the way she teaches children and helps them feel safe, knowing they are seen and heard in her classroom.
She is thankful for the time that she has been with Little Blessings. Over the years she has grown into not only a more confident teacher and follower of Jesus Christ, but a more confident person as well.
Ms. Heather
Director-Qualified Lead Teacher
Joined Little Blessings in 2017 as a substitute Support Staff, and became a part-time Lead Teacher for the Yellow Room in 2020-2021 and has been a Lead Teacher since the 2021-2022 school year.
She loves Jesus, her amazing husband, Chris, and their six children – Caleb, Logan, Stella, Josiah, Gideon and Titus born in 2002, 2005, 2010, 2012, 2013. Heather enjoys crocheting, acrylic painting, reading, coffee and building relationships to help others grow in the Lord. Her daughter attended Little Blessings when she was little and still sings the songs and shares fond stories!
She graduated from Northwest Missouri State University (Go Bearcats!) in 1999 with her Bachelors of Science in Marketing and worked in the advertising field in newspaper and magazines, and as a corporate event planner.
She truly enjoys watching the preschool children grow and learn new things-those light bulb moments are some of her favorites…when the moment clicks and the kids grasp something new. She’s excited to learn and grow with your little ones and knows she will learn just as much from them as they do from her!
Heather’s mother gave her the following verse as a little girl and it continues to guide her…“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6
Ms. Kim
Lead Teacher
Ms. Kim joined Little Blessings as a substitute support staff member in 2021. After working with the kids and staff at Little Blessings she realized she wanted to make this a permanent role. Most recently before Little Blessings, Ms. Kim was a stay at home mom for her two girls Audrey and Emma. Both of her daughters have attended Little Blessings and Ms. Kim loves the focus that is placed on emotions and relationship building. The skills her older daughter learned at Little Blessings significantly helped with her transition to kindergarten. Not only academically, but emotionally as well.
Ms. Kim has always had a strong faith and loves Jesus. She loves her family and loves working with children. She is often told she is a very patient and loving mother. She uses these same skills in the classroom to provide a safe space for the children where they feel comfortable and heard. She has found a nice balance with being gentle while providing the structure children need.
Ms. Kim has a Bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communication with an emphasis in Training and Development. She has always enjoyed working with children and is excited for this opportunity where she can continue to help children grow into their full potential and build their relationship with God.
Ms. Richelle
Lead Teacher
Ms. Richelle has been both Support Staff and most recently a Lead Teacher since October 2022. Before joining Little Blessings family, she was a children's hairstylist at Shear Madness for 10 years, specializing in haircuts for children with Special Needs. She has a passion for learning about early intervention for reading and writing for dyslexia and dysgraphia. Her favorite thing about teaching children is watching them learn, grow, and thrive spiritually, emotionally, and academically.
Richelle has lived in Olathe since 2009 with her husband Tim and their 5 children Madeline, Max, Sarah, Rebekah, and Evelyn. Before joining the Litle Blessings team she had enjoyed being mostly a stay-at-home Mom to her children born between 2005-2020. Her own children have attended Little Blessings Preschool since 2015, with her youngest attending her first year in 2023-2024. They have felt very blessed to call Little Blessings the first school for their babies.
Richelle and her husband Tim began attending LifeMission Church with their oldest two children in 2013. She has served in LifeMission Kids through the years and has also been in a Sisterhood Table small group since 2017 with an amazing group of women.
She was the PTO Secretary for her son’s last year in elementary school in 2023-2024. She is also involved with her two daughters’ Parent Teacher organization at their new school at New Life Children Academy in Gardener. They are very excited to be a part of that new school that opened in 2023-2024.
In Richelle’s spare time you can find her and her family supporting their children at Trilogy Cultural Arts where she does costumes for her kids’ shows. She and her family feel abundantly blessed to be a part of Trilogy, Little Blessings Preschool and LifeMission Church!
Ms. Natasha
Lead Teacher
Ms. Natasha began working at Little Blessings in the fall of 2023 as a teacher’s aide and became lead-qualified in 2024. She first learned about Little Blessings when searching for a preschool for her daughter and was excited to find a school that recognized the importance of addressing a child’s emotional needs first, and the behaviors secondary.
Ms. Natasha graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Fort Hays State University in 2015, which is also the same year, she married her husband. She worked for KVC as a Family Preservation Specialist from 2016 – 2018. In 2018, she decided to be a stay-at-home mother with her children, born 2018 and 2021. Both children have enjoyed attending Little Blessings Preschool.
Ms. Natasha loves Jesus and has a strong desire to raise her children knowing and loving Jesus as well. She applies the knowledge she’s gained from school, and the training she received from KVC in the way she teaches and addresses the needs of the children she works with. Ms. Natasha has always loved working with children, and strongly believes that helping them to recognize their emotions will give them the skills, confidence, and joy in the learning they do at school.