Ella’s Way: Turning The Page On Kindness And Acceptance

Ella’s Way is more than a children’s book initiative. It’s a heartfelt mission born from the passion and experience of retired nurse Sherry Cerino.

Her long career in pediatric and adult medicine exposed Cerino to individuals of all ages with complex needs and disabilities, developing her strong passion for respect and tolerance of differences. She decided to pursue a lifelong dream to become a published children’s author, using her nursing experience for insight, and focusing on a message of kindness and inclusion for young children.

However, it wasn’t until a trip to Bar Harbor, Maine, that she found inspiration for her first book. “I was watching two young children taking seashells back to the ocean that were stranded on the beach during low tide,” Cerino said. “I saw all those acts of kindness and thought, OK, that could be the theme of my story, acts of kindness.”

The book, titled Ella and the All Stars, introduces young readers to Ella, a starfish who befriends a group of unusual sea creatures. Ella learns that friends can come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and abilities. Cerino co-authored the book with her sister, Pamela Clemente, with illustrations provided by Nancy Cote.

Ella and the All Stars is the foundation for Cerino’s nonprofit, Ella’s Way. The name Ella carries a special significance. In Spanish, Estrella means star, which connects with the organization’s mission. Additionally, ELLA as an acronym stands for Early Learning Leads to Acceptance, which embodies the core philosophy of Cerino’s organization.

The mission behind Ella’s Way

Since the launch of her nonprofit, Cerino has authored four more books in the Ella’s Way series, each featuring main and supporting characters with differences designed to teach children ages 4 to 7 about kindness and acceptance.

Cerino chose to target that age group because research indicated children that age are in the friendship-forming stages of their development. “If left to their own devices, they pick kids who look just like themselves,” she said. “It’s just what feels most familiar to them. But if you introduce differences between the ages of 4 and 7 and plant the idea that anyone can be your friend and it might be interesting and fun to have a friend who is different than you, children are open to that.”

Ella’s Way focuses on getting books into homes and schools to reach children in this formative period. The organization donates books to public and school libraries and other environments where inclusion is a natural part of learning.

Reaching families of children this age – including adults who can influence how children think and behave – is one of the biggest roadblocks to her mission.

“I’ve had just one instance where I was reading this very benign undersea adventure story and I had a set of parents who wouldn’t allow their 5-year-olds to attend the story time,” Cerino said. “The library wasn’t surprised and said they’d had similar issues with the same parents before. But I thought it was weird because refusing to let them sit in on story time because it happens to include characters with differences isn’t keeping those things from a child. The child is going to experience it out there in the world whether we talk about it with them or not.”

Overcoming challenges to achieve self-publishing success

Establishing Ella’s Way wasn’t without its challenges. While obtaining her nonprofit status was relatively painless, Cerino said figuring out how to publish her first book was a significant obstacle. “I quickly discovered that unless you are a high-level, well-known author, agents don’t want to pick you up. So, you have to turn to the self-publishing realm and a lot of self-publishing companies take your creative control away.”

She ended up finding someone to edit the book, create illustrations for it, and a printer who would work with a new self-publishing author. “YouTube was my friend during this time,” she said, laughing. “I learned so much about how to use Photoshop and creating book covers, not to mention finding printers and illustrators. I was able to avoid having an organization take 90% of my profits by figuring out how to do it all myself.”

More books on the horizon

Cerino has two more books in the works. “They are both spinoffs of the original Ella and the All Stars,” she said.

One of the books deals with children with limb differences and features a lobster with just one arm who was a main character in her first book. “There aren’t many books out there that deal with limb differences, so I’m excited to add this story to the collection,” Cerino said.

The new books will be available on her website once released.

The power of partnerships and community support

Partners and community collaborators are vital to achieving the mission at Ella’s Way. Since its inception, Cerino has worked diligently to bring on other authors with stories of kindness and inclusion.

She’s partnered with authors around the world willing to share their time and talents with the organization, particularly during author appearances and story time opportunities that allow them to read their books to children in the target age range.

Ella’s Way regularly collaborates with organizations that would benefit from children’s literature donations and collaborates with them to distribute the books. Recent partnerships include Warrior Family Books for the NICU at Brigham Women’s Hospital and Camp Starfish in New Hampshire.

“I also encourage our authors to identify organizations they wish to support to foster a community-driven approach to philanthropy,” said Cerino.

New Initiatives: The Kindness Corner

One of the newest projects underway at Ella’s Way is the Kindness Corner, a startup kit designed by six to seven authors within the group. The kit includes a designated banner, plus a collection of books focused on diversity, disability awareness, and inclusion.

The Kindness Corner can be set up in libraries or classrooms to create a special area that celebrates these important themes, Cerino said. Six Kindness Corners are currently set up in libraries and classrooms across the country, with plans to expand further.

Looking to a kind and inclusive future

Looking ahead, Ella’s Way plans to recruit more authors to broaden its library. Cerino said she’s focused on adding titles where she currently lacks coverage, including for childhood allergies, alopecia, and childhood cancer.

The nonprofit also hopes to partner more with programs like Reading Rotary, which brings books into schools. Cerino said participating in enrichment programs that align with bullying prevention initiatives in schools and focus on kindness and inclusion is another goal.

As Ella’s Way continues to expand, Cerino said the organization remains focused on fostering a world where every child understands and embraces the beauty of diversity, kindness, and inclusion.

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