About us...
Sweet Pea Childcare, LLC, is proud to be a part of the local early childhood community in Eliot, Maine! Deb Erickson-Irons and Ashley Irons started designing the plan for Sweet Pea in late 2020, with the vision to create a childcare program that aligned with their values as mothers, nature lovers and passionate advocates for quality education and care for our children. They opened the program to their community in July of 2021 and the rest has been history in the making...
Sweet Pea is continuing to evolve its mission/vision for an inclusive nature based program, enriched with the arts and influenced with the Montessori philosophy of early childhood education. Their mindfully prepared learning environments and qualified team of teachers are exciting to share with you their love for ECE.
Sweet Pea Childcare is also on the state list for Women Owned Businesses;
https://www.mainewomensbusinesslist.com/listing/sweet-pea-childcare-llc/
Ashley Irons, Owner/ Director of Education
Shannon Donahue, Assistant Director of Education
Shannon Donahue, Assistant Director of Education
Ashley, is a Montessori certified preschool teacher and a professionally trained postpartum doula. She holds over 2 decades of direct childcare experience, within various learning environments and in-home family care settings. She has previous worked as a nanny, a youth camp counselor, an art teacher, a float teacher, a substitute teacher, an assistant teacher, a head teacher and director of education over the course of her career. She appreciates and values all positions within the childcare field and holds high standards for this professional work.
With her Bachelor’s of Science in Art Education, Ashley loves to share her passions of creativity and the arts with our youth. She cares deeply about the importance of outdoor play and exploration of nature and she is committed to providing a high quality and sensory rich learning environments at Sweet Pea Childcare.
"To assist a child, we must provide him with an environment that allows him to develop freely." -Maria Montessori
Shannon Donahue, Assistant Director of Education
Shannon Donahue, Assistant Director of Education
Shannon Donahue, Assistant Director of Education
Shannon, has spent the last 12 years working in various early childcare programs after receiving her Associates degree in Early Childhood Education. During covid and staying home with her daughter, she was able to get a Bachelors in Psychology with a concentration on early childhood and adolescence. When her daughter was 3, she started working at Sweet Pea as a Lead Teacher. After 2 years I was able to step into the role of Assistant Director am also pursuing my Masters Degree in Social Work.
"Because children grow up, we think a child's purpose is
to grow up. But a child s purpose is to be a child."
-Tom stappard
