When Anna Savier was a new mom, she, like many parents, craved community.
“I wanted to have playdates with other moms and get to know other people when I was new to the community,” Anna says. “It was really hard because you drop off your kids, you go to work and you don’t meet people.”
Now, as a mom to an 8-year-old and 10-year-old, Anna’s taking matters into her own hands by opening the doors of her school, Karter School of Parker, to the community at large.
Karter School of Parker, which opened on August 11, is a Montessori and STEAM-inspired school for infants through pre-kindergarten students. When school’s not in session, Anna makes the classrooms and building available to the public, not just the Karter school’s parents.
Last month, for instance, the school hosted a harvest and home market with local vendors and food trucks. They didn’t charge a vendor fee either. “We take nothing from it,” Anna says. “It’s just for the community.”
In November, the school is hosting a canned food drive. All food gathered will be donated to a local food bank.
“Once a month, we try to do something to bring everyone together and be supportive of each other,” Anna says. “If we can help a little bit, why not? ... I have a facility that I don’t have to ask permission to use. So why not help the people that I can?”
Anna also wants to support new moms. She plans to offer postpartum and mommy and me music and yoga classes in the future.
When Anna opened Karter School of Thornton in 2023, she offered similar programs for new moms and hosted community events. These classes and events help the Karter parents form a second family and bring the broader community together.
The events have been so successful that the Karter parents in Thornton formed group chats for dad poker nights and mom get-togethers. Some parents even put together a Karter Garage Sale in September, where Karter parents sold children’s clothes, toys and equipment to the broader community.
True, organic friendships are forming between parents. “That’s why I do it,” Anna says. “I do it for the bonding because we all need support, and I do the Karter community events because I want to help the community.”
The Parker and Thornton locations are part of the Karter Schools brand, which Anna and her sister, Linh Nguyen, co-founded in 2012 in Virginia, where Linh lives. Karter Schools remains a family-owned business with five locations in Virginia and two in Colorado. A third location in the Centennial State is expected to open in the Denver Tech Center next summer.
Since its founding, Karter Schools has always given back to its local communities and churches. Anna says giving back is part of her Vietnamese culture.
Anna’s and Linh’s give-back mentality reaches beyond the four walls of their schools and local zip codes. They are working to build a school in Asia.
“In Asia, there are a lot of kids that can’t afford to get educated and have the care and tools [they need],” Anna says. “So, we do this because we try to give back to our Vietnamese community.”
Dates to know
- 2012 — Karter Schools’ founding year
- October 2023 — Karter Schools opens first Colorado location in Thornton
- Aug. 11, 2025 — Karter School of Parker opens at 19920 Hilltop Road
- Nov. 3-10, 2025 — Parker location hosts canned food drive
- Coming Soon — Postpartum, Mommy and me music and yoga classes at Karter School of Parker