Shelley was born in Georgetown, Ontario, and lived there for the first 10 1/2 years of her life.  At that time, her parents decided to return to their home province and the family relocated to Moncton, New Brunswick where she spent the majority of her life.

Shelley grew up attending Sunday school as a child, and although she has always believed in Jesus, she didn't truly accept Him as her Lord and Saviour until she was an adult.  Since that time, Shelley has been active in the churches she attended, primarily as a children's Sunday school teacher and mid-week children's program leader.  It was while working with children at church where Shelley felt the call to become a teacher; her desire was to teach at a Christian school. 

Life before teaching was primarily spent doing some administration and data entry positions.  It was during this time when she felt the call to pursue teaching.  She quit her job and enrolled in Atlantic Baptist University (now Crandall) in Moncton, NB, and in 2006 she graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Biblical Studies.  The next year she obtained her TESL certificate and spent the following year teaching English at an all boys middle school in a small town in South Korea.  It was at this time that she was able to spend a month touring Egypt and even climbed Mount Sinai to watch the sun rise.

When she came home from South Korea, Shelley began her Bachelor of Education at ABU and completed half of her teaching practicum in Melbourne, Australia where she taught in a prep class (what they call kindergarten).  She graduated in 2009 with a degree in Elementary Education.  Following a couple of years of supply/substitute teaching in New Brunswick, Shelley found herself teaching at Christian Life School in Fort St. John, BC where she taught grades 3 and 4 over from 2022 to 2014.

At that time, Shelley moved back to the Maritimes to look after her ailing mother, and two years later, get married.  Shelley and her husband, Shaun, have been active in ministry at their church and in 2019 after accompanying her husband on several work-related trips to Ontario, they felt the call to move to the London area for Shelley to pursue her teaching career, and Shaun to work in ministry.