Gingerbread School House (Monroe, CT)

A huge thank you to all for the beautiful 'retirement' gathering today for Dee Dee and myself! The effort and love put into making this a very special day for us goes beyond any expectation.
There aren't enough words to express how grateful we are that so many Gingerbread alumni stopped by or sent pictures/videos for the very touching slideshow. It was such a gift to be able to see current friends and some very grown-up alumni returning to Gingerbread. Every time I turned around there was another bunch of faces that I knew instantly but hadn't seen in a long while. Thank you all for your kind words and well wishes.
I'm also not surprised that this event was planned to perfection. So a special thank you to Cindy Fuess O'Rourke, Daphne Counts Marcinek, Kirsten Keith, and Janet Patti (beautiful cake!) and so many others. I will miss all of you more than I can tell you. Gingerbread 2.0 is ready to launch in your extremely capable hands!
Donna and Dee Dee out!

Graduation #2 tonight at 6:30! Ok, 9:15 class, you're up next!!

I work with the best!!

Preschool graduation #1 tonight!!

MISS DEE DEE AND I ARE GRADUATING FROM PRESCHOOL TONIGHT!!

As many of you may already know, Miss Dee Dee and I will both be retiring this year. After 29 years at Gingerbread (24 years for Dee Dee) we are saying our goodbyes to teaching. I will be moving to southern New Hampshire in September to be closer to my children and eleven month old grandson. Miss Dee Dee will be staying in Monroe so you will still see her around town.

Both Dee Dee and I have been extremely blessed to have worked beside the most professional and dedicated teachers. Our co-workers have become our family in every sense of the word. So it is with great pleasure that we announce one of our own teachers, Cindy O’Rourke, has agreed to take over as new owner of Gingerbread. Cindy has been an invaluable member of our staff for 19 years. She is the primary reason why we feel comfortable retiring with the confidence that with her in the director’s spot, Gingerbread will continue to grow and flourish.

Over the last couple of years, Dee Dee and I discussed a pact. We joked that when I was ready to retire, we would leave teaching together, both of us going out in a “Thelma and Louise” blaze of glory….minus the cliff of course! It was always something we talked about in the future, so we aren’t quite sure how we’re going to adjust to not being at Gingerbread next year. Just the thought of missing these little faces makes us both teary eyed.

Gingerbread will continue to see teachers Daphne Marcinek and Kirsten Keith; and we are excited to announce that Janet Patti (former Gingerbread Mom and elementary school teacher) has agreed to start teaching in September. We couldn’t ask for a more perfect fit for Gingerbread moving forward.

This school and the town of Monroe have been my second home and such a large portion of my life that it will be difficult for me to say goodbye. Dee Dee and I will be leaving a huge piece of our hearts at Gingerbread, but above all we will miss the children and the families whom we have met through this amazing journey.

We thank you all for sharing your children with us. These years of teaching preschool with such wonderful little people definitely has many special rewards; and most of those are not “material”. The major rewards are the ones that we will keep in our hearts…..the laughs, the friendships, the smiling faces, the hugs, the pictures drawn with such care and given with love, the kind words and notes written by parents over the years. These beautiful memories are what we take with us, knowing that Gingerbread will be in great hands!
With Love and hugs,
Donna Samuels and Dee Dee Dunn Martin

Picnic today!!

YOGA DAY!! Thank you Lilia Wills from Bliss Yoga for the lesson today. So much fun on this beautiful day!!

Lots of fun at Olympic Day today!! So proud of all our 'athletes'!

Field trip to the Police Station today!