Jerelyn and I met as my youngest and her middle were graduating from elementary school. They were in 1st grade together, but our paths never really crossed. Plus, she had a girl and I had a boy and we all know how that goes! I knew she was in the arts, but didn’t know the extent. She knew I had a creative and media agency, but it took the kids graduating for us to finally sit down to lunch and learn more.
Jerelyn, all by her little self, started the Westside Children’s Theater, a musical theater company for youth talent. She is the the director, creator and teacher for the entire program. Just recently she added more to her plate (along with being a mother of 3 girls and wife to her main man for 20 years), she started teaching improv/drama at Polaris Teen Center, a residential mental health facility for adolescents in Tarzana, CA. She says her cup is full and it is because she lives by her own mantra; The Three C’s: Communication, Confidence and Creativity. This is what drives her and gets her up in the mornings to continue to mentor, nurture and connect – she couldn’t imagine living any other way.
There are many theater programs to choose from in L.A. but with Jerelyn you not only get sense of the art of theater, you also get heart, soul, substance and a loving and nurturing place for your kids to grow and learn how to use their own voices.

Questions
What is your greatest weakness?
The baked goods section in any supermarket.
Favorite person to follow on Instagram?
My daughters…. and Jennifer Garner.
Salty or Sweet?
Sweet and Salty!
What is your best trait?
My integrity and possibly my dimples.
What do you most value in your friendships?
Honesty and Humor.
Who is your favorite hero in fiction?
To me, Jo March, from “Little Women” is a hero. She’s yesterday’s trailblazer. She was the definition of a “nasty woman”.
What is on the top of your bucket list?
Travel to Africa with my family. We really want to visit the kids we sponsor in Tanzania and Burkina Faso.
I surprise myself when…
I don’t overbook myself.
What is your vice?
Coffee.
Contact info:
- Website: westsidechildrenstheatre.com
- Email: jerelyn@westsidechildrenstheatre.com
- Instagram: @westsidechildrenstheatre
- Facebook: westsidechildrenstheatre