Willa and Paul Carlson

Please Help Willa Carlson Transition to a Safe and Permanent Home:

Our dear friend, neighbor, and former colleague, Willa Carlson, needs our help. Willa’s house is currently uninhabitable due to a poorly timed leak, resulting in the living room ceiling caving in.

Friends of Willa and her husband Paul are asking for donations to help Willa, who has served her community for so many years, to help pay rent for a safe home to live in the next 6 months, while she figures out her housing situation.

In early January of this year, Paul was recovering from some health issues and they decided to stay in a hotel so that Willa could care for him all on one floor and neither had to use stairs. Paul had a few restful days at the hotel.

Unfortunately, while they were staying at the hotel, a leak at their house above their living room caused serious damage, making their home unsafe to live in.

On January 18th, Paul had to be taken back to the hospital. Sadly, Paul passed away later that night. Losing Paul and a safe home at the same time has been extremely stressful for Willa.

Willa and Paul lived in New Providence where they were married in 1965 and had their daughter and son. They later moved to Chatham Township.

Willa and Paul were passionate about serving their community. Paul was a member of the Chatham Township Volunteer Fire Department for 45 years. Nothing made Paul happier than helping to fix things, whether it was changing the oil in his daughter’s car, fixing things around their house, or helping Willa carry her many bags of teaching materials into the schools where she worked.

Willa began her more than 50-year career in education at the age of 22, after graduating with a elementary teaching degree. She started as a third grade teacher in Liberty Corner and later in New Providence. Willa continued to teach third grade until her first child, Elizabeth, was born in 1969. In 1972 after her son Erick was born, Willa went back to school to study Early Childhood Education. She devoted the rest of her career to teaching young children.

While raising her own children, Willa worked as a children’s librarian in New Providence, and as a preschool teacher at Free Acres Community Co-op in Berkeley Heights Township, the YMCA of Berkeley Heights’s Kinder Care class, The Summit Co-op, and Sprout House, a preschool in Chatham. As an early childhood educator at Sprout House, Willa brought magic to the classroom. With her big bag filled with stories, puppets and objects from nature, children experienced the joys of listening and self-expression during Willa’s rich and loving story times. Willa also worked patiently with children on process art projects, regardless of a child’s age. Each child was free to go at their own pace.

With Paul’s help, Willa would transform an ordinary classroom into another world. Sometimes it was a farm, a restaurant, a post office, or a grocery store. The children were engaged for many happy hours playing and pretending in these dramatic play areas.

Throughout her career in education, Willa taught with intelligence, creativity, caring, love, and deep respect for the development of each individual child. Willa and Paul both worked hard for our community for many years and contributed in countless ways.

Any contribution, regardless of the size, would be incredibly appreciated to help Willa find a safe place to land during a time of great change and uncertainty.

Many Thanks!