About us
A center that stayed small on purpose
Pocket Creek has had one address, one owner and one kitchen since 2009.
Our story
One room, six children, 2009
Marisol Vega taught toddlers for eleven years before she rented a single room on Willow Run Lane and opened with six children and one assistant. Families kept asking for more, so she added a room at a time, until there were four.
She never added a second location. Her rule is that the director should know every child’s name and every family’s schedule, and teachers should be in the same room long enough for a toddler to learn to trust them. Most of our lead teachers have been here more than five years.
We’re licensed for 54 children, and we’re a family business: Marisol’s daughter Camila helps in the office on Fridays.
- Opened in 2009
- Four rooms, 54 children, one address
- English and Spanish spoken here
Your child’s teachers
Each room has a lead teacher and a second teacher. Here are the leaders, with their training.
- MV
Marisol Vega
Owner and director
Opened Pocket Creek in 2009 after eleven years teaching toddlers. She answers the phone, leads every tour and still covers a room when someone is out.
B.A. in early childhood education · Colorado director qualification · pediatric first aid and CPR
- JA
Joy Abara
Lead teacher, Minnows (infants)
Has worked with babies for fifteen years, nine of them here. She keeps a written note of every bottle, nap and diaper for each family.
Infant-toddler CDA credential · pediatric first aid and CPR · safe sleep trained
- RC
Renee Castellano
Lead teacher, Tadpoles (toddlers)
Speaks Spanish and English with the toddlers and teaches them songs in both. Six years at Pocket Creek.
A.A.S. in early childhood education · pediatric first aid and CPR
- TW
Tomasz Wierzbicki
Lead teacher, Dragonflies (ages 2½ to 4)
A former carpenter who now builds block cities, mud kitchens and a very good reading corner with four-year-olds. Five years here, twelve in child care.
Early childhood teacher qualification · pediatric first aid and CPR
- AR
Aisha Rahman
Lead teacher, Herons (pre-K)
Plans the year before kindergarten around stories, counting games and learning to take turns. Eight years here.
B.A. in elementary education with early childhood endorsement · pediatric first aid and CPR
- HB
Hattie Brandt
Kitchen manager
Cooks breakfast, lunch and snacks from scratch every day and keeps our allergy chart on the kitchen wall, checked against each family’s plan.
Certified food protection manager · pediatric first aid and CPR
What we care about
Mud, books and a good lunch
We think children learn most from play they choose, from teachers who talk with them, and from time outside. We keep a garden, a sandbox and a mud kitchen, and a library corner in every room. We feed children well, we tell families the truth, and we keep the fees simple.
Teach with us
We’re hiring a lead teacher and a teaching assistant, and we keep a list of substitutes.