About Keela

When I was a little girl, my family used to spend every summer at my grandparent's house in downtown Littleton, Colorado. 

My great-grandfather Veto LaRocco was from Paterno, Sicily, and opened a Shoe Repair Shop in Downtown Littleton in 1929.  There were some incredible Storytellers in that little shop on Main Street.  I didn't help much with the shoes or shining, but I loved the storytelling.  I listened and laughed a lot.  My brother, Anthony, and I could be found Tinkering, Making, and Creating in "The Shop," my Grandma Gina's garden, or riding our bikes up to 7-Eleven or the record and comic book store nearby with our slurpies in hand.  

Those summers were sweet, and the very beginning of my love of people and the craft of storytelling began there. 

If my brother and I weren't at the shoe shop, we were in Grandma Gina's garden. 

I remember picking crab apples straight from the tree and getting to fill my sunhat with as many big, juicy red raspberries as I could pluck from the bush. 

Then we would gather fresh mint to make iced tea and lemonade and sip and tell stories in her backyard with generations of women.

Anthony and I ate more berries than we would deliver home in our sunhats, as evidenced by the raspberry juice smeared all over our faces, but Grandma Gina didn't care. Grandmas are special that way.

Grandma Gina just made us promise to save enough to put on our sugar pancakes in the morning.  

And we always did.

I grew up in Highlands Ranch, Colorado.  I earned a degree in Broadcast Journalism from the Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU) and a Master's in Elementary Education from Regis University. 

While in University, I danced in the National Football League with the Denver Broncos Cheerleaders and had the opportunity to participate in entertainment and morale shows for US troops overseas in Iraq, Italy, Afghanistan, Japan, and UAE. 

After graduating, I became an Early Years & Elementary School teacher.  As a passionate content creator for a children's theater, I specialize in developing engaging storytelling and story-making courses that inspire creativity in children of all ages. In addition to my work with young audiences, I offer consulting services to schools, providing professional development opportunities for teachers and staff through my website, empowering them to foster a love for storytelling in their classrooms.

I married my high school sweetheart, Bryan, and we began our young married lives overseas. We moved to Singapore the day after we got married and we've now lived in Malaysia, Mongolia, Kenya, the USA, and Nigeria together. 

Our children were both born in the United States, but are being raised overseas in languages and cultures that aren't native to them.  That has led to some big adventures and sometimes even bigger challenges.  As a family, we are learning to see the world through new lenses every day.  In my experience, one of the best ways to process change, challenges, joys, and life's lessons is through the power of a story.

My favorite Storytime buddies are our two children--They are smart, bold, curious, silly... and my absolute favorite storytellers!  We can often be found having kitchen dance parties, game nights, baking (and licking the spoon), swimming, and, of course, telling stories.