Defying the odds

Defying the odds

< Back to Articles | Topics: Cover story | Contributors: Emily Bednarz | Published: October 1, 2024

Cover Image Left: Jeannine Riant is the owner of Fully Align Studio. Right: Terri Kottwitz is Co-Founder and Executive Director of ForestKids Early Learning.


Every year, the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) hosts Small Business Week during the third full week of October. This year’s Small Business Week theme is “The power of small: Defying the odds.”

Small business owners may feel that the odds are already stacked against them. When adding the impacts of natural disasters—like the wildfires and flooding in HRM last year—the odds must seem insurmountable.

And yet, many entrepreneurs in our municipality faced the trauma brought about by last year’s wildfires and flooding with compassion, grace, and tenacity. Jeannine Riant (owner of Fully Align Studio) and Terri Kottwitz (Co-Founder and Executive Director of ForestKids Early Learning) are the perfect examples of this year’s Small Business Week theme.

In the face of disaster, Riant and Kottwitz pivoted and rebuilt. They continued to honour their passion and their communities while chasing the spark of inspiration—the magic that lives at the heart of any successful small business.

Jeannine Riant (top right) is owner of Fully Align Studio, a wellness sanctuary with a mission to create a safe space for women to connect and heal. The studio experienced extensive damage after the flooding of 2023.

Jeannine Riant, Fully Align Studio

A teacher by trade, Jeannine Riant has been in and out of the small business world for decades. “I come from a family of entrepreneurs, so the entrepreneurial spirit has always been part of me,” she says. After selling the business she had co-owned with her ex-husband for 15 years, Riant wanted to strike out on her own.

It was a challenging period for Riant. “I left a 27-year relationship in 2017 and faced a financial crisis that I had to manage on my own,” she says. “It took me four years to climb out of it—hitting rock bottom, struggling to buy a winter coat for my daughter, and being in a really tough place. But I came out of it and did what I needed to do.”

During this time, Riant was inspired by the desire to help others make deep and meaningful connections between mind and body. “I wanted to help women heal, to dive deep into themselves,” she says. “I felt a strong passion to bring women into this space of healing and self-discovery.”

That desire had to be tempered by some self-discovery of her own, however. “At first, I wanted to share this passion—getting into that flow, diving deep into that intuitive and healing space—with everyone,” she says. “But not everyone is ready for that, and that was a big realization for me. I was pushing it on people, and I scared some away.”

Riant found success after taking time to work on her own healing and development. “I took a step back,” she says. “I focused on myself, and gradually, people began resonating with what I was doing. Once I stopped trying to save everyone, things started falling into place.”

Riant was drawn back into the small business world shortly after the initial waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. “I was feeling a nudge—like I needed to do something,” she says. “It was time to share my wisdom and create a safe place for women. I felt like I needed to find a place, and that intuitive nudge led me to find the studio.”

Riant envisioned Fully Align Studio as a place where bridges could be built and healing could happen. “During the pandemic, there was so much division, and women, in particular, needed a space where they could feel safe, without judgment,” she says. “My goal was to create that space, where people could come in exactly as they were, without discussing differences in opinion or belief. As long as they were kind, they were welcome.”

Riant opened the doors of Fully Align Studio in 2021. “Things were looking up, and people were excited,” she says. “I knew the fall of 2023 would be great, with people lined up to rent space. But in 2023, on my youngest daughter’s birthday, I lost the studio.”

Fully Align Studio has shifted business online since the flooding in 2023.
Fully Align Studio has shifted business online since the flooding in 2023.

Flooding in Bedford

On July 21, 2023, Nova Scotia was hit with the heaviest rain it had seen in 50 years. Ten inches of rain—what the province normally sees over the course of three months—fell in less than 24 hours. Areas on the Bedford Highway and around the Sackville and Little Sackville Rivers, where Fully Align Studio was located, were hit hard by flash flooding.

Riant reflects on the night of the flooding. “That evening, I was having supper with a friend, and we commented on the amount of rain that was falling,” she says. “Around 9:00 PM that night, we went down the hill to look near the area where my studio was, and we saw the fire truck stuck in the water.”

The following day, Riant started to get a clearer picture of the damage—three feet of water had flooded the building. “It really hit me then,” she says. “People were walking around my studio, and I felt like my private space was being invaded. It was surreal.”

Although she had lost the safe and welcoming space she worked so hard to cultivate, the flood affirmed the impact of her work. “That whole week was filled with emotions—tears, people helping, and community members showing up,” says Riant. “I hadn’t realized how much support I had until then. I had always wanted the studio to be a place for community, and the flood showed me that it was becoming one.”

Riant took time to process and heal. “I made sure to feel all the emotions and let them go, because that’s what I teach,” she says. “Still, I did question why—why the flood, the divorce, the financial struggles. Eventually, I let it go, trusting there was more the universe wanted me to do.”

The universe delivered for Riant. “Amid all the mess, I received a big training opportunity that I couldn’t have paid for otherwise,” she says. “I even applied for the Halifax Chamber’s Small Business Award after the flood. At first, I wasn’t going to, but I thought, ‘What do I have to lose?’”

Riant became a finalist for Small Business of the Year. “Being part of that experience brought visibility, opened doors, and allowed me to meet people I wouldn’t have otherwise,” she says. “Someone even told me they saw me on screen at the awards and felt they needed to meet me. It’s helped me become known in the community, which has been a beautiful thing.”

Looking back, Riant has walked away from the flood with a new perspective on what it means to be a small business owner. “I realized the importance of sticking to what you love,” she says. “It’s going to be hard, and there will be moments of struggle. There were many times this past year when I could have gone back to teaching, but that little voice inside said, ‘No, that’s not what you want to do.’ So I listened. Since 2017, and even more so after creating and losing the studio, I’ve learned to trust that voice. My biggest piece of advice is to listen to that voice and stay true to it, because even with bumps along the way, it will lead you where you need to be.”

ForestKids Early Learning focuses on play and nature-based learning.
ForestKids Early Learning focuses on play and nature-based learning.

Terri Kottwitz, ForestKids Early Learning

Like Riant, Terri Kottwitz has entrepreneurship baked into her DNA. Kottwitz’s mother opened Delightful Times Daycare in Hammonds Plains in 1989, and Kottwitz started working at the daycare later that year.

When her mother retired in 2003, she opened Hammonds Plains Children’s Centre with a distinct vision and philosophy. “We immediately focused on creating a play-based, child-led centre by restructuring the outdoor space,” she says.

Growing up, Kottwitz developed a deep love of nature and the sense of freedom it provides. “I grew up in a small community in Queens County, where I was free to explore and ride my bike wherever I wished,” she says. “I spent days playing in rainwater, and when it dried up, I made mud pies from the cracked dirt left behind on hot summer days. My father was a strong influence on my love for the forest. My family went camping, had picnics, and fished in local rivers. This is where my love for children and nature crossed paths and what led me to my career.”

In 2011, Kottwitz and her husband bought a property on Yankeetown Road with 26 acres of land. “We then opened our forest to the children and named the program ForestKids Early Learning,” she says. “We incorporated natural materials and removed most plastics, such as large plastic play equipment, replacing them with nature-based alternatives.”

Kottwitz didn’t just renovate the outdoor space—she also ensured that kids were equipped to play there. “I learned early on in my childcare career that not all families could afford proper outdoor clothing for their children,” she says. “That led us to providing all children with outdoor clothing at no cost.”

Like Riant, Kottwitz also focused on providing a safe, welcoming place for growth and development. “The preschool age group spent full days in the forest, sleeping in hammocks, exploring the land, gathering wood, learning to use tools to saw their winter firewood, cooking bannock over an open fire, and learning to respect nature and one another,” she says. “The children also cared for a beehive, fed chickens, and played with dogs.”

The ForestKids Early Learning centre in Hammonds Plains was burned to the ground in the wildfires of 2023.
The ForestKids Early Learning centre in Hammonds Plains was burned to the ground in the wildfires of 2023.

Facing the wildfires

In May 2023, Nova Scotia had a historic wildfire season. Over 200 homes were destroyed in Shelburne County, Upper Tantallon, and Hammonds Plains—where ForestKids is located. Recognizing the potential impacts of the wildfires, the Halifax Chamber acted quickly, connecting with its members to understand their needs. The Chamber was able to offer a $5,000 grant to ForestKids to support their rebuilding.

When the wildfires first started, Kottwitz didn’t anticipate they would impact her business. In fact, her first impulse was to open the centre as a safe place for people who had been evacuated. “I was at Sobeys in Upper Tantallon when a mother and her child came through the checkout, grabbing a few essential items,” she recalls. “I noticed her child was only wearing a diaper, as they had just been evacuated from a neighbouring subdivision. I offered her the services of ForestKids because we had shelter, clothing, food, diapers, and toys for children to play with.”

The centre couldn’t serve as a safe space for long, however. “Just one hour after the first evacuation in Tantallon, we had to pack our belongings and leave our centre and home behind,” she says. “We could see the flames approaching Hammonds Plains Road.”

Kottwitz and her husband found a room at the Inn on the Lake to accommodate them and their four dogs. Then, they waited. “From that point on, we didn’t know whether our home and business were still standing or lost,” she says. “We were given a number to call for updates, but none provided real answers. It was through neighbours and community members posting pictures and videos of their evacuations that we discovered the devastation. Everything was gone.”

Once the ForestKids team could return to the property, they got to work setting up alternate childcare spaces at the Cornerstone Wesleyan Church, Friends for Life Childcare Centre, and eventually trailers on their property. “In December 2023, with the help of staff, families, and community members, we were able to open our first renovated and licensed building for ForestKids,” says Kottwitz.

Kottwitz is grateful to the community for their support, especially for the benefit of the children at the centre. “During such a difficult time, with the help and dedication of the ForestKids staff, we were able to provide the children with a sense of security and routine, despite the uncertainty facing our community,” she says.

Rebuilding and reopening the centre, all while transitioning to a non-profit model, has not been easy for Kottwitz. “Much has changed, and will continue to change, as we navigate through this transition,” she says. “We had hoped government grants for non-profits would help us to fully rebuild ForestKids, but we are still left with a gap of $197,000.”

Kottwitz is proud of the positive impact the ForestKids approach has had, despite the challenges and changes the centre has experienced. “We have transformed the traditional daycare setting into a nature-based, child-led environment where children learn independence, serve their own meals, dress appropriately for outdoor play, and communicate effectively with others,” she says. “Although we have transitioned from a private to a non-profit centre, we strive to maintain the image we have worked hard to build. Knowing that ForestKids will continue to serve the community provides some relief from the heartache caused by the wildfires of 2023.”

< Back to Articles | Topics: Cover story

Stay Connected

Subscribe to our weekly e-newsletter and receive important updates on Halifax Chamber events, Member benefits and advocacy news.