
Our Staff
Doodlebugs is a fun loving staff with more than a lifetime of combined experience. They love working with children and their goal is to create a fun filled learning experience!

Lee Austin
Owner & Co-Founder

Lee, a veteran teacher of 36 years started Doodlebugs with her sister Jo Holton in 2005 and became sole owner in 2006. She is a proud mom of 3 boys. She is passionate about the school and remains completely involved. She is the current Grade R teacher.
Sarah Visser
Head of Baby Department

Sarah is a mom of three, two boys and a girl. Sarah joined Doodlebugs in April of its start up year and has a great love and passion for her little ones. She has an excellent sense of humour and being involved in her class is her happy place. She quickly went from teacher assistant to heading up our baby centre. She loves meeting the newcomers each year and is passionate about helping build the foundation for her littlies at Doodlebugs
Jacky Biel
Teachers Assistant

Jacky started in our Big Bugz class and then moved to our Grade R class in 2019 as a teachers assistant. She started with her studies in 2021 and is currently studying and is now teaching our two- to three-year-olds. She is a mom of a little boy and the children love this fun filled teacher.
Portia Clay
Teachers Assistant

Portia is a mom of two beautiful boys. She started working at Doodlebugs as an assistant in 2009 after realising that the retail industry was not her passion. She loves working with children and she feels what she learns from them, makes her a better mommy to her own boys! She believes in morals and values and being a role model to those around her as well as
the children.
Tanya Pedro
Teacher

Shelly Troskie
Deputy Head

Shelly joined the Doodlebugs team as a teacher assistant and quickly completed her studies to qualify as a teacher. Shelly always goes the extra mile for her class. She got married in 2012. She became a mommy to a beautiful little girl in March 2013 and then a beautiful boy in 2016. Both grew up in our Doodlebugs family.
Shelly Namba
Teachers Assistant

Shelly is a mom of three, identical twin girls and a boy. Shelly joined our team in our start up year with no experience as a teacher assistant. She quickly adjusted and loves working with
the littlies. The staff find her very easy to talk to and she was soon promoted to staff supervisor. She loves working with children and helping build a better future for them. She is currently the assistant to the Little Nemo class and has been with them since they were little doods.
Leatitia Masena
Teachers Assistant

Leatitia is mom to two children, a girl and a boy. She is also now a granny to an adorable little toddler who has granny’s fun and feisty temperament. Leatitia initially started with the toddlers
and then started moving up with the class of 2014. She stayed with this group until they graduated in 2020. Needless to say she was very loved by these children. She is currently the assistant in the Grade R class and also assists with the aftercares and their homework.
Tersia Michello
Teachers Assistant

Tersia initially started as a cleaner and when we noticed her kindness and patience with the littlies she soon became
a teaching assistant. She loves the little babies and toddlers and they love her. Tersia is currently our Pooh bear class assistant and she started with them when they were babies in 2023.
Tanya joined our team as our cook and we soon realised she had a huge affinity for working with children. We convinced her to switch course and to become a teacher assistant which she absolutely loved. Her fun-loving nature makes her approachable and enables the children to have fun while they learn. She soon gave birth to her second son in 2015 and shortly after that started her studies to become a teacher. She works very hard for what she wants and has achieved her goal of becoming a qualified teacher in 2020. She is now teaching her own class.
Nicole Buis
Teachers Assistant

Nicole, originally a Mossel Bay local, is an assistant teacher at Doodlebugs. From the get-go she developed a strong bond with the children, who have grown very attached to her. Nicole describes the school as a second home, offering a sense of freedom and happiness to all who attend. The children at Doodlebugs helped her realize her passion for teaching and allow her to continue growing her educational skills.
Belinda Lucas
Housekeeping

Belinda has been at Doodlebugs for two years. Her passion for being in a clean and organised environment, combined with a deep love for children, drives her excitement and commitment to her role. The joyful and supportive environment at Doodlebugs motivates her to come to work each day. Belinda values this safe and positive workplace and is proud to help make Doodlebugs a safe and fun place for kids to learn and grow.
Eurika Snoek
Teacher

Eurika is a mother to a beautiful daughter and a teacher in the Little Nemo class. As the eldest of 4 kids, she took on the responsibility of caring for her younger siblings, which sparked her love for working with children. Eurika's beautiful voice and love of entertaining brings joy and laughter to the classroom. She loves engaging with the kids and watching them grow day by day.
Jenny Mkoko
Chef

Jenny is a talented chef and proud mom to 3 beautiful children. She loves cooking for the little Doodles and experiments with creating new dishes in her spare time. She's honored to prepare delicious and nutritious meals to the energetic, young and growing minds at school.
Lizelle Njoloza
Teachers Assistant

Lizelle is a proud mother of 3 beautiful kids. She started working at Doodlebugs in February 2023 as a part-time assistant in the baby room and did such a wonderful job that she took on a role as full-time assistant in 2024. Lizelle is motivated by the supportive team at Doodlebugs and loves celebrating the developmental milestones of the littllies she takes care of. Lizelle is aiming to be a qualified teacher in the near future and we're excited to continue watching her grow.