HOME I am Wendy Hoering

By BethAnne Brink-Cox

| Photos provided Wendy Hoering and her husband, Justin, weren’t high school sweethearts, but they sure had a sweet connection: they met working at Steak ‘n Shake.

“He was a grill person; I was a server,” Hoering said. “We were all friendly on staff; a lot of connections were made there, including my brother and his wife. But as people married and moved on, we realized we were the only ones left. He planned to go to IU Bloomington for an internship. I moved to Georgia, thinking it would be my dream. But he didn’t go, and I wasn’t happy being so far away from my family and friends and him!”

Hoering didn’t know what she wanted to do when she started college.

“I just knew I wanted to make an impact on the world and enjoy my work,” she said. When she was yonger, she was part of a youth center, The Power House in New Haven, with mentors that provided a lot of support, encouragement and love. An incredible woman named Cheryl really cared about the kids; she was professional and inspirational. Hoering interned for her, and she taught her about writing grants and budgeting.

Hoering knew she needed to work with people, but she wasn’t sure how, so she prayed about it.

“Sometimes you need to stay right where you are. I’d had one interaction with a family who had a little one in school I arranged for that, her enrolling, bus, all that and Mama was staying at Mad Anthony Children’s Hope House, which it was called then and which I’d never heard of, because her newborn was in the NICU. She was so relieved, and that was the peace I needed to go forward with this work.”

After applying and interviewing, Hoering became the Executive Director of Hope’s Harbor where the mission is clear: “We take care of families so they can take care of their kids.”

It’s hard, Hoering said, for families with critically ill children, especially with siblings who might not understand much, but that Mom and Dad are busy with sister or brother.

“I think, for me, the most important thing to do is be the best at meeting people right where they are. And that’s different for every person,” she said. “If a parent shared that their baby had a rough night and had to go back on oxygen, I want to be present; be listening. It is extreme grief and challenging when your children are sick, and so often I hear, ‘Oh, I am so glad you’re here.’ We all work toward that for the families. We want them to be able to get a meal, a shower, a clean, safe place to rest. It’s hard on families to juggle childcare at times like this.”

Hoering said her favorite room is the playroom because the little ones don’t understand everything, but they need to feel cared for. They need time together with each other as a family, and staff and volunteers spend some time that way, as well.

“It’s incredible, too, when people within a family’s network come out in support during what may be the darkest days of their lives,” she said. “One such group provided a meal for everyone in the house, because that whole family was impacted. You can’t forget about things like that when you see them.”

Hoering and her husband, who is an assistant principal, cherish their family time, maybe even more so because of their work.

They have two children: daughter Madeline is the oldest, 10, and son Jordan is 9. Hoering said they have very independent interests. Jordan likes athletics.

“The first time he played baseball it was so much fun to watch him, and he’s made a lot of new friends from the neighborhood, which is great because there are so many different schools the kids go to,” she said. “Madeline tried competitive dance for a year and realized she does not like to compete, only to perform. She said the competition is too stressful, but performing is fun. We all love to read. We love the library in New Haven, but we go to the main library and other branch locations as well. Right now we’re super into the Harry Potter books. There’s so much good to experience. We love riding our bikes. The kids have activities like zoo camp, expanding their network of friends and interests.”

The kids come and go to Grandma’s house for before and after care, Hoering said. “She makes them breakfast, gets them on the bus, and has turned them into newspaper readers. She’ll lay out a section for Madeline and a different one for Jordan!” Now Grandma can lay out GLO and show them that, as well. a