On Thursday the 7th of February. Marvella Brown Johnson was one of the founders of Our Little Angels Childcare Association passed away. Marvella held various leadership positions at the Local Association level. She also served as a past Virginia Alliance Board of Director.
Passion and Commitment With a History of Community Service
President: Monica Jackson
Leadership contribution:
Strong Leadership and Administrative Skills. Monica is experienced in the area of business development, finances, and other duties and responsibilities in the daily management of an organization. Her knowledge, drive, and experiences are invaluable resources. Her work experience includes over 20 years in the financial industry: specializing in commercial and residential real estate lending. She also demonstrated comprehensive knowledge of the banking industry as a Commercial Loan Officer and as a Credit Manager.
Monica’s commitment to community service is just as extensive as her employment history. For over 10 years, on a weekly basis, she has served as the Event / Hospitality Coordinator at her local church. In the summer, she coordinates a community outreach festive event for over 1,200. Weekly, she served as a volunteer Hot Lunch Coordinator at her children’s school. With the support of other parent she serves over 400 meals to the staff and students. Her service to the school system includes a significant financial contribution to the Parent Teacher Organization while serving as Vice President of Fundraising.
She is sufficiently familiar with child care issues and has been an active participant in the evaluation and financing of several election campaigns. As a result, she is quite familiar with the electoral and legislative process. She is able to understand the potential linkages, trade-offs, and impact of child care policies, practices and legislations. Her work history, professional experiences, academic accomplishments (includes a degree in Early Childhood) coupled with her dedication and enthusiasm enable her to be skilled in understanding child care issues. Monica possesses the necessary skills with a proven track record that is making a valuable contribution to VAFCCA.
Secretary: Mary Braxton
Leadership Contribution:
Strong administrative, marketing, organizational and public relations talents. Mary has been in the early childhood industry for over 16 years. She has been a nanny, worked as a Lead  Teacher in a Child Care Center, and has operated her own Family Child Care for 15 years. She is President of a Local Association, Kid Kare and is currently working towards an Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education at Northern Virginia Community College. She serves as a volunteer in her children's school and does workshop presentations in various areas, and loves interacting with providers, sharing what she knows and also learning what they know.
Treasurer: Sonnia Jones
Leadership Contribution:
Longevity with history, experience, and administrative skills with the Alliance. Sonnia has been a family Child Care Provider for over 25 years. She is the founder and President of a Local Association of thr Franklin County Family Day Care Association which she established in 1995. Sonnia works closely with the Department of Social Services in her area to provide training to Family Child Care Providers.
Alliance Education Fund: Marie Mosby
Leadership Contribution:
Retired Verizon Executive with 28 years of service. Marie has a lengthy listing of academic accomplishments which include a Master's Degree in Organizational Behavior and Management and Project Management plus a Bachelor's Degree in Speech Communication. She has a Certificate in Infant and Toddler Programs and an Associates Degree in Early Childhood. She has volunteered for over 15 years for Arlington County's Office on Aging, Adult Protective Services as a Guardian/Conservator working with Senior citizens. She is also served on the Board for the National Rehabilitation Bureau in the District of Columbia and as a Senior Consultant Manager at Lucent Technologies. Prior to entering the child care field she owned her own Telecommunications Consulting Business. Marie has proven leadership skills, along with multiple other experiences, such as negotiating, marketing, international relation, business operations and computer literacy.
Aisha Bhatty
Leadership Contribution:
Aisha is an experienced licensed child care provider with a degree in Education; she is one of the 16 Family Child Care Providers in the state who has earned an Accreditation from the National Association for Family Childcare. Also she holds a Child Development Associates (CDA) Credential and an Infant Toddler Career Certificate. She believes in continuing education, as she has taken 56 college credits in the past few years and is working towards providing physical, emotional, social, and psychological needs of the future generation. In her spare time, she mentors other child care providers and children. In 2005, she represented the Fairfax County Childcare providers in the first Fairfax Futures Symposium. She also worked with the Local Association in Northern Virginia as a Board Member and Vice President, and helped with linking the diverse culture community of Fairfax County. Aisha Bhatty’s native language is Urdu, Hindi, and Punjab. Her ability to speak these languages is a great asset and is a vital link to connect other Family Child Care Providers in the Northern Virginia diverse community.
Brenda L. Cubero
Leadership Contribution
I married my high school sweetheart and we have been married for 21 years. I am a mother of 3 and I have been a family child care provider for 9 years in Richmond, Virginia. I have an Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education. I mentor local providers for United Way’s Success by 6 Star Quality Program. Currently I sit on a number of committees in the Richmond area including the QRIS committee for family child care and ECDC Quality Early Care & Education Committee. I am the co-founder of the Child Care Connection of Richmond and currently serve as the Vice President as well as the Training and Education chairperson. I have been trained in the Family Child Care Rating Scale (FCCRS). My passion is educating providers about this business and being a voice for those that need it.
Nora Dove
Leadership Contribution:
Daycare has been my profession for eighteen years. When I first started it was to be for one year. During my eighteen years I have and continue with classes to support what I do in a professional way. My educational background is business administration and this has helped me in my daycare business.
I currently serve as President of the Mount Vernon-Lee Childcare Association and serve with very energetic ladies who are focused on putting children at the forefront. I am married and have four sons and they are a great support system. My hobbies are arts & crafts, traveling, and gardening.
Silvia Mills
Leadership Contribution:
Silvia Mills who has been a Family Child Care Provider for almost 25 years has been on the VAFCCA Board for the over ten years, during which, she has performed numerous duties and responsibilities. Her talents, knowledge, and strengths lie in the areas of legislative affairs and Public Policy.
Silvia has a college background in psychology, accounting, business, child development, and real estate. Her community service contribution is extensive. For the past ten years she has served as President of the Jefferson Area Child Care Association (JACCA), a local association supporting Family Child Care Providers in the Charlottesville region. As an advocate for children, parents, and providers, Silvia serves on the board of numerous child care affiliated organizations. She has served as a Board of Directors for her local church for over 20 years.
She effectively uses her talents and experience to serve as an advocate for quality child care. She believes that if something is wrong, it should be corrected, and puts her efforts towards change. Silvia has been Public Policy Chair since 2000.
Doris Stevens
Leadership Contribution:
Doris Stevens has a Degree in Speech and is a lifetime member of Empire Who’s Who and Empowering Executive Profession. She is the Founder and President of the Local Association, Our Little Angels Childcare Association. She has served a total of 9 years on the VAFCCA Board of Directors. In that time, she has served on the Finance Committee, and Ways and Means Committee. She is currently serving as Parliamentarian and is on the Local Leadership and Development Committee of the VAFCCA. With help from the VAFCCA leaders, she also implemented the White Elephant Auction which is held at our yearly conference. The funds from this event go towards supporting the Scholarship Program for the first time conference attendees at the VAFCCA Annual Training Conference.
Rebecca Washington
Leadership Contribution:
Started her professional child care business after serving 9 years in the Military. She has been a Family Child Care Provider for over 23 years…she has her Child Development Associates (CDA) Credentials, and she has operated a Child Care Center as a Director for one year. Rebecca has previously been a member of Our Little Angels and is currently an active member in the Local Association, Kid Kare.
Lorraine Whitfield
Leadership Contribution
A childcare provider for over 28 years. The owner and Administrator of Mama Lorraine’s Childcare LLC., in Remington, Virginia. She is currently attending Lord Fairfax Community College and is working towards a degree in Human Services/Counseling. She would love to be a Childcare Counselor. She has her Childcare Associate, Early Childhood Certificate and over 100 hours of training in all areas. She is the wife and mother of six children and four grand children. She is currently the President of Fauquier Family Child Care Association, VAFCCA, VSACCA, Fauquier County Community Service Board and advocate for Special Education Program.
Executive Board:
Monica Jackson
Contact Info:5201 Heming Ave
Springfield, VA 22151
Monicapj@cox.net
703-354-5913
www.vafcca.org