Bekah Barrales - Owner/Administrator
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Hi, I am Bekah Barrales. I am the owner/administrator of Bee Balm. I have been at BBLC since September 2005 and the owner since 2014. I have a B.A in Art History from UW Madison, an Early Childhood Administrator’s credential, an Early Childhood Leadership Credential, and an Early Childhood Program Development Credential all from UW Milwaukee. I am also a Tier 3 Wisconsin Registry trainer and technical assistant as well as a contributing author to the early childhood magazine, Exchange. My family includes my husband Manuel, my son Luka (born in 2013), my twin daughters, Charleigh and Reya (born in 2021), my twin stepdaughters, Daphne and Tasha (born in 1996- fun fact- Luka, Daphne, and Tasha were all born on October 19th- 17 years apart!), and our dog Sizu. We live in Oregon. My hobbies include tennis, running, walking, hiking, biking, swimming, reading, yoga, and painting. On most weekends, if it is not soccer season and I am not at my son’s soccer games, you can usually find me hanging in our backyard with my family or hiking or biking at a nearby park with my family. I have dedicated my career to early childhood education and to creating a community where everyone feels safe and valued and has the opportunity to grow into the best version of themselves. I feel so blessed that I can be a part of making a positive impact on every member of this community. My workdays are filled with children’s laughter and their ever-present joy; I can’t imagine anything better than that!
Kyle Klenko - Director of Operations
I have been working at Bee Balm Learning Center since June of 2009. I hold the position of Director of Operations. I have a bachelor's degree in business administration and look to utilize my skills to make Bee Balm the best early learning center in Madison. I enjoy working with children because every day offers something different. I live in Middleton and am a proud dog dad to a beagle mix, named Wisko.
Lyndsay Blohm - Assistant Director
After graduating with an Art and Design Teaching degree from Edgewood College many years ago, I stumbled into Early Education. My plan was to be a high school Art Teacher. Throughout the years, I left Early Education a few times to pursue my degree, yet always found myself coming back to work with the younger crowd. This path has always been significant to me because I can wholeheartedly say that this is what I am passionate about and that it is what, “I was meant to do.” In 2011 (before we were BBLC), I was hired to be the 2/3’s teacher. That is still my “sweet
spot” as far as favorite age and developmental stage to work with goes. My role has changed, as now I help out in the office, coordinate the gardens and CSA, offer support to teachers and their classroom environments, and other odds and ends around BBLC. When I am not at BBLC, my partner Steve and I spend a lot of time enjoying the local music scene, using any excuse (Packer games especially) to have a cook-out/pot-luck with friends and exploring Wisconsin and beyond via road trips. We pack a lot into the warmer months; floating the Wisconsin River and searching for the best hidden gem campsites are our dog, Louetta’s favorites. She makes trout fishing trickier but we will continue to work on that.
Rachel Melvin- Assistant Director
Hello BBLC families! I have been working at Bee Balm since November of 2019 and was the lead teacher in the Sweet Peas Classroom for a little over 3 years. In May 2023 I joined the admin team and have been really enjoying it. I do miss my babies but visit them frequently. I have 2 kiddos of my own; Dominic (born in 2017), and Winston (born 11 months later in 2018) and we love to visit parks, do art, and be out in nature. I love being part of the Bee Balm family and working with such great families and co-workers!