Friday, January 30, 2026
Just two years into her role as an instructor, Aimee Guzman is already an undisputed centerpiece of Milwaukee Recreation’s Beulah Brinton Community Center.
Affectionately known to her students as “Ms. Aimee,” Guzman took a dormant toddler play group program at Beulah Brinton and transformed it into a robust lineup of 17 diverse, weekly classes that serve 200 children each season. Guzman’s extensive class offerings include Regulation Station, Tot Time With Aimee, Thomas and Friends, Fidgity Foodies, Sporty Sprouts, Mini Mixed Media Marvels, and more.
In recognition of her dedication and efforts, Guzman has been named the 2025 Barbara Leszczynski Customer Service Award winner. The award, now in its 16th year, is named after a former Milwaukee Recreation clerical team member known for her outstanding empathy and customer service. Each fall, Milwaukee Recreation seeks nominations from all full-time staff, and then the award committee selects the winner, who is recognized with a plaque.
Past winners include: David Hojnacki (2010), Diane Winter (2011), Alonzo Watkins (2012), Marta Santos (2013), Anna Torres (2014), Rick Knack (2015), Shannon Galindo (2016), James Kocinski (2017), Steve Slaughter (2018), Datherine Young-Garrett (2019), Maria Montoya (2020), Priscilla Struck (2021), Sharon Scull (2022), Todd Jackson (2023), and Clem Allen (2024).
“Ms. Aimee gives toddlers a great experience as their first experience in recreation,” Beulah Brinton supervisor Joel Symons wrote when he nominated Guzman for the award. “Story time, dancing, arts and crafts, choo-chooing with Thomas the train, chewing on healthy snacks, learning to kick a ball and swing a bat, and, of course, bubbles.”
Symons first met Guzman nearly two decades ago when he was her son’s middle school basketball league coach at Beulah Brinton. Symons fondly remembers her generosity in donating jerseys for the entire team. The two kept in touch over the years, and, in September 2023, Guzman approached Symons about teaching toddler classes at Beulah Brinton.
Guzman is the mother of six adult children — whom she homeschooled — owned a licensed child care center for five years, and has fostered around 50 children with her husband Erick. In reaching out to Symons, Guzman sought to increase access to affordable, developmentally beneficial early childhood programming in Milwaukee. Guzman’s classes are $15 per season for Milwaukee residents and $23 per season for non-residents.
“Oftentimes, there are programs out there, but so many people are priced out of them,” she said last year. “I love that we can give all of these options but at a very reasonable price. If we didn’t have Milwaukee Recreation’s programs, there would be so many kids who could not take part simply because of cost.”
Guzman’s classes integrate structured activities and games, helping children develop important learning comprehension, listening, teamwork, and sharing skills disguised as hands-on fun. Toddlers burn off energy on the Regulation Station obstacle course, learn to share and build train tracks at Thomas and Friends, taste new ingredients and make simple treats at Fidgity Foodies, and get acquainted with a variety of team sports at Sporty Sprouts.
“My goal is to enrich the Milwaukee-area preschool community with fun and engaging recreation classes until I retire,” Guzman said. “I love my job. I love my coworkers. I love the families I work with. I’m living the dream!”
Guzman has also been essential in creating and teaching multiple classes for children who have sensory processing challenges, Symons said. The classes are designed to meet the diverse needs of these children and their families by creating inclusive, responsive environments that promote regulation, engagement, and positive learning experiences.
“When Aimee started, she said she was willing to do anything,” Symons said. “She has proven that with all her endeavors. The energy and effort Ms. Aimee puts into every class is exhausting to watch, but each one of her kids reaps the benefits of her sweat equity.”
Milwaukee Recreation has many people who are deserving of the Customer Service Award, Symons continued. “The reason I think Ms. Aimee is most deserving — besides being the Michael Jordan of instructors — is that she chose us. Every rec department in the world would love to have Ms. Aimee.”