Our Team
Athina Vandevoort
Originally hailing from Belgium, Athina has been in Asia for nearly a decade. She obtained her BSc in Midwifery in 2016 and has since worked as a midwife on the European, African and Asian continent with a wide variety of cultures.
After moving to Singapore, she did additional studies to become a DONA certified Birth and Postpartum Doula. For 4 years, she worked in all private hospitals in Singapore as a birth companion and assisted hundreds of couples during labour and birth with her emotional, physical and mental support. She was also a member of the executive committee of the Doulas of Singapore organisation, a not for profit society facilitating communication between medical professionals and doulas.
In 2021, she attained her International Board Certified Lactation Consultant certification. This is a worldwide recognised accreditation of the highest standard. IBCLC’s are required to renew their certification every 5 years by sitting for exams.
Athina is a healthcare practitioner with a special interest in breastfeeding. She empowering couples to have the birth they desire, and optimises their breastfeeding journeys for a more pleasant postpartum journey.
Melissa Gunadesa
Melissa is a veteran in the field with a career in early childhood and enrichment, primary, special education, learning intervention and education consultancy spanning an illustrious 22-year journey.
With a formal education in early childhood and special education, Melissa is highly sought after for her classes, intervention programs, and consultancy, particularly in program development, program review, and classroom audits.
Melissa's 'Tour of Duty' includes extensive tenures at Julia Gabriel’s Centre for Learning, Chiltern House, and Zoophonics, among others. In 2008, she founded her own school, Colourful Hearts, which she successfully expanded to three centres before selling it in 2017.
Of her 22-year career, 14 were focused on growing Colourful Hearts, where she developed curriculum from the ground up, led business and marketing strategies, and managed and trained a diverse team of educators and staff.
In recent years, Melissa has expanded her practice to include holistic modalities such as Reiki and hypnosis. She integrates these healing arts into her educational and consultancy work, offering a compassionate, whole-child and parent approach that addresses both academic and emotional well-being for the entire family. This unique blend of educational expertise and holistic healing makes her a distinctive voice in the fields of learning intervention and personal transformation.