SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT ROOTED IN KIRKLAND, READY TO LISTEN How Janene Panek helps teens ride life’s rollercoaster Janene with her hubby, Gary! Meet Janene Panek of Rollercoaster Teen Coaching F or Janene Panek, Kirkland isn’t just a place on the map—it’s home in the truest sense. Born in the Midwest and raised in Kirkland from the age of three, she grew up in the same neighborhoods and schools that surround her today. She attended Carl Sandburg Elementary, Finn Hill Jr. High (back when it was still called that), and graduated from Juanita High School in 1995. Now, she’s raising her own teens in the very community that shaped her early years and values. 24 January 2026 Though she was brought up by loving, supportive Midwestern parents who both wholeheartedly modeled the joy of “talking to strangers”, she remembers absorbing an unspoken message many kids of her generation internalized: that some emotions were acceptable, and others were better tucked away or ignored. She learned early how to keep the peace, push down uncomfortable feelings, and people-please rather than express what she truly felt. Looking back, she recognizes how common that experience is—and how much it can influence confidence, boundaries, and self-worth. “I want kids to know there are no bad emotions,” she says. “When teens can talk about what they’re feeling— without shame or fear—they build confidence and boundaries instead of diminishing parts of themselves.” Janene’s path to coaching wasn’t linear, but in hindsight, every step prepared her for the work she does now. After graduating from the University of Washington with an Interdisciplinary Arts & Science degree (with an emphasis on Society, Ethics, and Human Behavior), she spent 12 years at Starbucks Coffee Company in both retail roles and corporate HR. She later stepped back from the workforce to be home with her two kids for three years, and when she returned, it was through a role that would quietly change everything: working in the front office and health room at Carl Sandburg Elementary. In that school health room, she started noticing a shift. More and more students were coming in not because they were sick, but because they were overwhelmed. They needed a place to cry, reset, or escape for a few minutes. She had a natural way of sitting with them, listening, and helping them feel grounded again. She didn’t know it yet, but those quiet moments were setting the stage for her calling. Then THE PANDEMIC HIT—and it amplified what she was already seeing. Anxiety, loneliness, and emotional
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