Health Promotion Leaders
Cheryl Stetsko-Mayne
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Family, food and fun are Cheryl’s three loves. Her work as a Registered Dietitian has enabled me to support families to make food fun.
Role with CHEERS
Cheryl’s role as a Health Promotion Leader in Grande Prairie allows her to support early childhood educators in their goal to implement healthy eating and physical activity best practices within child care.
Cheryl enjoys hiking, biking and being outdoors.
Christine Yapp
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Christine has worked in the community for almost eight years promoting health and wellness in schools. Christine has over ten years of experience in the fitness industry teaching various styles of group fitness such as spin, HIIT, and yoga.
Role with CHEERS
Christine is super passionate about leading and coaching others especially when it comes to health, wellness, and promoting an active lifestyle. As a Health Promotion Leader, Christine is driven to share the positive benefits of the CHEERS program with child care educators, children, and their families.
Some of Christine’s favourite ways to stay active include tennis, volleyball, biking, hot yoga, and hiking.
Erynn Biggar
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Background Erynn loves to live an active lifestyle, so it made sense for her to pursue a career in the sport and fitness industry. She loves teaching her fitness classes; everything from kids to older adults! Erynn is a mother of two, who love to adventure with her.
Role with CHEERS
The Health Promotion Leader position was a perfect fit for Erynn, as she’s able to combine both her love for health and her love for kids. She enjoys working with her centres to find creative ways to help them integrate healthy choices into their everyday life.
You’ll often find Erynn and kids outdoors hiking, biking or trying a new sport altogether.
Nicolle Mah
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Nicolle has 15 years of experience in child care with children ranging from 4 months to 12 years. She has 5 years of nutrition experience and studied nutrition and food sciences at the University of Alberta.
Role with CHEERS
Nicolle meets with early childhood educators to create a nutrition and physical literacy plan that benefits the health of the children.
Nicole values including children’s insight when working with educators to achieve their healthy eating and physical activity goals.
Ashley Turner
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Ashley Turner is a Registered Dietitian. She grew up in Winnipeg, MB and completed her Bachelor of Science in Human Nutritional Sciences at the University of Manitoba. Ashley then went on to complete her dietetic internship in Moncton, NB. In 2018, Ashley moved to Calgary and loves spending time in the mountains exploring.
Role with CHEERS
Ashley is a Health Promotion Leader (HPL) with CHEERS. Her role in this position supports child care centres and their educators to improve healthy eating and physical activity opportunities for children and their families within those centres. Ashley is passionate about nutrition and how it can help individuals. She understands that there is a lot of information out there and that food and nutrition can be confusing… but it doesn’t need to be! Ashley loves kids and working as an HPL helps her to combine her passion for nutrition and love of children.
Ashley loves helping individuals and families learn about nutrition in a way that makes sense to them and that meets their unique needs.
Judith McNicol
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Judith is in her final few months of dietetic internship with the University of Alberta. She grew up in Glasgow, Scotland and completed her Bachelor of Science in Physiology and Sports Science at the University of Glasgow.
Role with CHEERS
Health Promotion Leader. I am passionate about nutrition literacy and inspiring children to explore food from a young age. Being able to combine physical activity with nutrition means that this role is perfectly suited to her interests.
Judith loves exploring the mountains and giving others the ability to enjoy the outdoors – especially in the winter.
Amber Reid
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Amber has over ten years of experience promoting health and wellness in various positions. She attended the University of Saskatchewan where she earned a Bachelor of Education and a Bachelor of Science Kinesiology. Amber also holds a designation of CSEP Exercise Physiologist.
Role with CHEERS
Amber is a Health Promotion Leader (HPL) with CHEERS. Amber brings to this position a love of healthy living, children, and education. She supports educators to improve health opportunities for their children and families by creating engaging environments.
Amber enjoys cycling, swimming, and any outdoor adventure with her family.
Deanna Marler
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
Deanna is a Professional Human Ecologist (B.Sc.H.Ecol) with a Master of Public Health from the University of Waterloo. She has over five years of experience developing health programming within the school and community environment, and she is passionate about analyzing health policy.
Role with CHEERS
Deanna is a Health Promotion Leader (HPL) with CHEERS. She is passionate about her role because it helps build health literacy in early childhood, which is essential for creating sustainable change within the community.
Deanna enjoys participating in different sports and outdoor activities throughout the year. Deanna also loves to bake and experiment with new recipes.
Community Facilitators
Sharon Reib
Community Session Facilitator, CHEERS
Sharon attended the University of Calgary where she received a Bachelor of Education degree, with a specialization in early childhood, and later a Master of Arts degree in Leadership. Most of her career was spent as a teacher and school principal, K-12, with the Calgary Board of Education (CBE). But also has experience working as an executive director for a childcare agency and teaching in the post-secondary environment. Sharon remains a contract faculty at Mount Royal University teaching various courses for the Child Studies and Education department.
Role with CHEERS
Sharon is part of the CHEERS team as a facilitator of the Community sessions. She is passionate about teaching and learning and knows that the work early childhood professionals do to support children and families can be life-changing for those involved – the children and families - and the educators themselves.
Sharon enjoys spending time with her family, She is married and has a daughter, three stepsons and five wonderful grandchildren. She finds getting out into nature as much as possible contributes a lot to my health and happiness.
MaryAnn Farebrother
Community Session Facilitator, CHEERS
MaryAnn has had extensive experience working with children, families and child care program staff in child care, preschool, out-of-school care and family day home programs. She has been an ongoing advocate for quality care for all young children. Currently, MaryAnn teaches courses to ELCC/BCST students at Mount Royal University and is a Pedagogical Partner and Leader for the Mount Royal University/ARCQE AB ELCC Curriculum Framework Project.
Her research interests include pedagogical leadership, mentoring and coaching
and her teaching focus is around the child, family and community.
Role with CHEERS
MaryAnn was the Research Project Manager for CHEERS from September 2016 to December 2018 and, more recently, one of the CHEERS Community Session Facilitators from September to December 2020.
MaryAnn is also an active member of the AECEA and the Chairperson of the AB Leaders Caucus. She was the recipient of the ACCAAward of Excellence in 2014.
Alumni
A well functioning team can make a world of difference. Our alumni have made important contributions to the success of the CHEERS research project, and we wish them well on the next steps of their career and making their mark on society.
Pierrette Elias
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
2019-2021
Pierrette has worked as a Registered Dietitian based in Edmonton for many years. Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Food Science and a Masters of Science with a specialization in Health Promotion and Behavioural Science from the University of Alberta.
Role with CHEERS
Pierette supported child care centres to provide healthy eating and physically active environments for their children and families.
Melissa Conniff
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
2019-2021
Melissa has worked as a Registered Dietitian for 18 years and is passionate about helping families and children improve their nutrition for the best health outcomes. This work has included helping families in the community, hospital, First Nation communities, and private practice settings.
Role with CHEERS
Melissa supported child care centres to provide healthy eating and physically active environments for their children and families.
Megan Wallace
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
2019-2021
Megan is a registered dietitian who has worked for 9 years in various areas but her favourite has been Public Health.
Role with CHEERS
Melissa supported child care centres to provide healthy eating and physically active environments for their children and families.
Paige Fogen
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
2020-2021
Paige graduated from the University of Calgary with Masters in Social Work. She practiced social work in the USA for the past six years and recently returned to Lethbridge. Paige is a registered/licensed Clinical Social Worker in both Alberta and Hawaii.
Role with CHEERS
Melissa supported child care centres to provide healthy eating and physically active environments for their children and families.
Rachel Newell
Health Promotion Leader, CHEERS
2019-2021
Rachel graduated with a of Bachelor of Science degree with an emphasis on health from Western Washington University. In 2011 she moved to Canada from the United States where she continues to pursue her passion for health.
Role with CHEERS
Melissa supported child care centres to provide healthy eating and physically active environments for their children and families.
Rachel is a mom of twin girls and an avid cross-fitter.
