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Every
family is unique. Every parent has their own special strengths to work
with, and their own challenges to work on. And each and every child
deserves the best that we can give them.
The quality of care that all children receive has been my passion for
as long as I can remember. After receiving my diploma in Early Childhood
Education in 1973, I continued my studies while working in daycares
and preschools. The possibilities expanded when I was offered a position
to work one-on-one with a young deaf, autistic boy who was placed in
a class with other deaf children. One of the main requirements of the
position was to learn American Sign Language.
After several years of working with deaf children I went on to work
with deaf and hard-of-hearing children and adults in a variety of capacities.
In 1988 I was a married step-mom to deaf twin sons and pregnant with
my second child when I was invited to lead a course for deaf parents
entitled "How To Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will
Talk” by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish. It was through this course
that I discovered my passion for parent education.
I embraced the philosophy taught by Faber and Mazlish and went on to
lead it for several years for local family life agencies. I also lead
the "Systematic Training For Effective Parenting" (S.T.E.P)
courses, and was introduced to the work of Barbara Coloroso, who is
an internationally recognized speaker and author in the areas of parenting,
teaching, school discipline, non-violent conflict resolution.
During many years of leading parenting programs I was also applying
the tools I teach other parents to my own growing family. This led me
to design my own workshops based on the philosophy of democratic parenting.
For over 20 years I have been called upon regularly to present parenting
workshops in the Vancouver, British Columbia area. In 2002 I began training
as a life coach. With the encouragement of my own coach, Leni Chauvin,
I decided to combine my passion and expertise in parenting with life
coaching and launched The Parenting Coach.com. My training in coaching
is on-going. I am also a student of the Law of Attraction and use many
of those tools with clients.
My coaching sessions with parents are one-on-one, primarily over the
phone. I believe in looking at the big picture to find out what other
areas of a parent's life may be affecting their children and their parenting.
No two families are alike and there is no single solution that suits
everyone.
Although I have been frequently quoted in "Today’s Parent"
which is Canada's leading parenting magazine, and am often called upon
to share expertise on both internet and AM radio, the best acknowledgements
I receive come from parents. Words like warm, approachable, intuitive
and non-judgmental let me know just how vital this mission is.
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