05/28/2026
Do I really get to do this?
Lately I’ve been sitting with a deep sense of gratitude for what we’ve been creating through Spark PA.
I changed careers at 35 years old and here I am 11+ years of teaching and I can honestly say the joy hasn’t faded. If anything, it’s deepened. Watching children create, paint, play, self-express and discover who they are never stops feeling meaningful to me.
This season especially, I’ve fallen in love with teaching in an entirely new way through carpentry. There’s something powerful about watching kids work with real tools, collaborate to build something with their own hands, and experience the pride that comes from creating something tangible in the real world.
And nature isn’t just the backdrop to what we do at Spark PA anymore. It has become the thing that anchors the entire program. Years ago, Spark began in a small NYC apartment rooted in art, yoga, and meditation. But here in Pennsylvania, surrounded by forests, space and open sky, the vision has expanded in the most aligned and beautiful way. Adding Nature as the fourth pillar didn’t feel like a strategy but rather the perfect evolution for whole child creative development.
I feel incredibly grateful that life has brought me here. What we’re building with Spark in both New York and Pennsylvania feels less like a business and more like a calling. A place where creativity, mindfulness, movement, craftsmanship and nature help children build confidence, connection, resilience, and a deeper relationship with themselves and the world around them.
I think the greatest gift is that I still wake up excited to do this work. That what we’re building continues to feel deeply alive, meaningful, and worth dedicating my life to. I pinch myself on the daily. But most of all I want to thank the kids because they truly make Spark PA what it is - extraordinary!
artteache
