Eileen Beecher had the most generous heart, always giving 100% of herself to others, especially to all children. She made sure that any child who came into contact with her would leave feeling seen, heard and very special. She believed that every child deserved to begin life with a solid foundation of feeling safe, loved, nurtured, respected and worthy. She brought her passion of creating confident and joyful children to her 30+ year career as a kindergarten teacher. Her students would leap into her arms and wouldn't let go because everyone who knew her would feel embraced by the warmth of her genuinely beautiful soul. She was legendary in Bethesda, Maryland! Everywhere she went parents of previous students would come up to her and thank her for her magical gift of instilling a lasting confidence in their children. Her connection to and interest in the wellbeing of her students didn't end when they left kindergarten. Once someone was a student of hers, they received her friendship and unconditional support for life. When she retired, grateful parents presented her with a tapestry featuring photos of each of her classes and the names of her more than 700 students. She would keep in touch with so many of her students as they grew, sending them encouraging or congratulatory notes just to let them know she was thinking about them. They would often seek her out as teenagers when they needed extra support, or just to thank her for always believing in them. She received an incredible number of invitations to her previous students' high school and college graduations, and even to some of their weddings. She modeled living life with love, grace, kindness, acceptance, selflessness, and integrity, all while juggling her deep devotion to her family, her career, her wonderful mom and her many other roles. She was often described as a gentle superwoman--her strength and determination were calm and quiet, but so mighty. Eileen empowered so many children to be able to live their best lives, and helped to create a more peaceful and kinder world for generations to come. Mary Jo Ernst lives a creative life designing clothing, sketching and painting. She is a versatile artist working in many different mediums that result in a whimsical style that pulls the viewer in for a closer look. She owns and operates a custom dress design business in Chicago and splits her time in Michigan where she teaches art classes to children and to adults. This is the 3rd book that she has illustrated. To see more of Mary Jo's artwork, please go to @MysteriousMannequin.
