Meet the Mulhollands

Know Your Neighbors

by Julie Lundin

Meet Bill and Kendra Mulholland of Hokan Trail in Indianbrook, where they have lived for five years. Bill appreciates Indianbrook because the majority of their neighbors do an excellent job of maintaining their properties, which looks nice for neighbors as they drive or walk through the neighborhood each day. Kendra enjoys the quiet peacefulness of Indianbrook and connecting with their neighbors. They both also like the many activities that are put on by the Indianbrook Homeowners Association (HOA).

Bill was born and raised in Kenton, Ohio. He is now a Radiation Oncology Nurse Practitioner for Bon Secours Mercy Health. In addition, he is a published author, and the previous HOA President in Indianbrook. Kendra is from a military family and grew up in various locations. She lived in Michigan, Korea, California, Chicago, Dayton, and Harrod, Ohio. She is currently a Nurse Practitioner at Bon Secours Mercy Health Westside and Eastside Urgent Care, and a Nurse Practitioner for Health Partners of Western Ohio and the Kenton Community Health Center.

Bill and Kendra met in college as single parents. They tied the knot in December 2006 and then raised two sons, Cody and Dylan, along with two daughters, Cheyanne and Ciera, while they were both working and attending college full-time. They are now the proud grandparents of six grandchildren: Layton, Makenna, Cameren, Laurel, Elijah, and Cecilia (deceased). Today, their grown children live throughout the country. Cody, his wife Kassie, and their children live in a suburb of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Dylan and his fiancé, Bethanny, reside in Lima, but travel out of state for work. Cheyanne lives in Boynton Beach, Florida, while Ciera and her fiancée, Alex, reside in Milford, Pennsylvania.

Bill and Kendra thoroughly enjoy camping, and they are often doing so over the Fourth of July! Favorite campsites include the Indian Lake State Park, Huggy Bear Campground, and Hocking Hills. They also like to visit their children in Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Florida. Bill and Kendra’s favorite destination locations are Mexico and Jamaica, with bucket list destinations that include Hawaii and the Holy Land in Israel. Another wonderful experience for the couple was going on medical missions to Port-au-Prince, Haiti at the H.I.S. Home for Children Orphanage. “We have fallen in love with both the country of Haiti, as well as the children at the orphanage,” stated Bill. When they aren’t traveling and are finally home, you might find Bill and Kendra at their favorite restaurant, La Charreada in both Shawnee and on Harding Highway where they enjoy the food and outstanding service at both locations!

On June 15, 2022, life drastically changed for Bill and Kendra with the loss of their beloved granddaughter, Cecilia, at only three and a half years of age. Their precious granddaughter had a rare form of epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome, which is incurable and gets progressively worse with age. Roughly 80% of people with Dravet’s are non-verbal and have significant developmental delays that worsen over time. Cecilia defied these odds! She spoke all of the time in her own language, but also said simple words to communicate. She was very creative, had extremely good comprehension, and knew her colors, letters, numbers, and shapes! The day after the passing of Cecilia, Bill sat down and wrote a poem for her called “Poppy’s Little Girl.” This unlocked a passion in Bill and he has been writing a poem for Cecilia every Wednesday since that first poem. Per the request of many people, Bill published a book of these poems in February of this year. The same month, his book entitled “Last Wednesday” was also published. This book depicts Cecilia’s life, struggles, Dravet Syndrome, and how her journey impacted their family and Cecilia’s mommy, Cheyanne. This March, Bill’s book “Why Am I Here?” was published. This book describes finding God’s purpose in one’s life. Currently, Bill is writing a fourth book that will be published this summer. Cecilia was a rare soul. Bill and Kendra were very blessed to have her in their lives for three and a half years. They speak to her daily and know that she continues to touch the lives of others when people read about her story. In fact, upon Cecilia’s passing, Bill and Kendra needed something positive in their lives, so they decided to go to Old Man’s Cave in Hocking Hills to renew their wedding vows.

Here are a few lines from one of Bill’s poems, “Cecilia Raen,” written six days after Cecilia’s death:

Emotional waves come and go, but memories always prevail

I remember everything about you in the most minute detail.

Your eyes so blue and smile so bright, your giggles were the best

So smart you were with everything, my life was truly blessed.

*Bill’s books can be found on Amazon, Kindle, Apple Books, and Kobo (ebooks and paperbacks; audiobooks will be available soon) or through his website billmulholland-author.com where you can purchase the books or send him a note to obtain a signed copy.