With support from employment services, benefits counseling and self-employment training, Michaela Davin transformed her interests in storytelling and crafts into meaningful paid work with children. Her career path demonstrates the power of aligning personal talents with local workforce needs.
By Kristen Cyr
Michaela Davin has turned her love of storytelling and crafts into a job working with children at Dreamland Learning Center, where she leads themed reading and activity sessions and helps the teachers with other tasks.
With support from her team at The Fogarty Center, Davin explored different employment possibilities through funding from the Office of Rehabilitation Services and the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals.
Davin, 26, developed her idea for “Michaela’s Storytime” into paid employment that combines creativity, structure and hands-on work with young children through participating in the Rhode Island Developmental Disabilities Council’s Self-Employment Business Development program.
She said the course helped her recognize that her own interests and talents could become part of a job. Using the elevator pitch she developed in the self-employment classes, she met with the director of Dreamland in Pawtucket.
“They liked my business idea and hired me onto their team,” she said.
In addition to leading story and craft activities, she helps teachers in the classroom, organizes materials, supervises children on the playground and helps children get ready for nap time. She first began volunteering at the center, working one day a week before officially joining the staff in summer 2025.
Her story time activities are often built around upcoming holidays. Davin chooses books geared toward early elementary-aged children, then plans related arts and crafts to accompany the reading. In February, for example, she read the book “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Rose” before helping children create Valentine’s cards. When there is no upcoming holiday, she chooses books she enjoys and develops crafts to match.
Finding the right career path
Before discovering self-employment opportunities, Davin worked at Gregg’s and Chelo’s restaurants. “I wiped down tables and I usually cleaned the windows and doors,” she said. “I thought I wanted to work as a hostess, but really I wanted to do other things.” She also loves animals and also tried working with an animal trainer at Petco before choosing to focus on her story time business idea.
To prepare for work, Davin had work incentives benefits counseling through Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities.
“My family and I met with a benefits planner from the Sherlock Center and learned that I can work and would not lose my benefits,” she said.
When Davin first started working at Dreamland, a job coach provided more hands-on support throughout the day. Over time, she said that help has become less frequent as she has grown comfortable there.
“Now, I know my routine and when to do things, and my job coach only will help me a little here and there, usually if I need help focusing,” she said.
Kristin McManus-Guisti, associate director of Employment Services at The Fogarty Center, said Davin’s job coach offers reminders, assists with routines and helps her set boundaries with the children.
“Sometimes when the kids are getting a little close in your space, right?” McManus-Guisti asked Davin, who nodded. “Especially when we’re not really fond of being like touched and having people in our bubble. He helps her calm down sometimes and remember that they’re kids. When she first started, she wouldn’t enforce her own boundaries and would just tell them to go away. And now it’s what, Michaela?”
“This is my space,” Davin says, marking an imaginary boundary around herself.
Building friendships beyond work
In her free time, Davin connects with her friends Ryan, Robert and Bryce. McManus-Guisti said the social group focuses on community-based outings and employment-related activities.
“We found that we were helping with employment and that was wonderful, but that they were losing the social aspects of being able to interact with their friends, especially the younger generation that was coming out of high school,” she said. “So we started some social groups with some of those who work.”
“We go all over the place,” Davin said. “We sometimes go to arcades and stuff.”
They also learn adult daily living skills, including cooking.
“Every month they are responsible for picking a recipe, budgeting out for that recipe, going shopping at the actual store, and then they get to cook what they've planned,” McManus-Guisti said.
Davin’s favorite so far was a turkey casserole the group made last Thanksgiving. “We liked it. It was really good!” Next on their list was a chicken salad and pasta salad.
She likes having salon days and adding fun colors to her hair – her favorite is red – and taking day trips with her aunt. She also enjoys theater outings, including “Wicked” at the Providence Performing Arts Center in March and Festival Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” every December.
In addition to providing her with what she calls “hair money” for the salon, Davin said she looks forward to going to work because it makes her feel good that she has a job and that she’s helping kids. She also likes her co-workers and the children.
“Now I get to do my business idea while also doing other tasks at the day care,” she said.
About
Michaela Davin
Michaela Davin works at Dreamland Learning Center in Pawtucket, where she leads themed story time and craft activities for children while assisting teachers with classroom support. She developed her business idea, “Michaela’s Storytime,” during self-employment classes through the Rhode Island Developmental Disabilities Council and with support from The Fogarty Center. When she’s not working with children, Davin enjoys theater outings, salon days, cooking activities with friends and community-based social groups.