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BY SUSAN LANIER.GRAHAM
PHOTOS BY CARL SCHULTZ
PHOTOS SHOT ON-S]TE
AT HOPf ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Van EE has, in a way,
comefull
circle. She was born and raieed in Phoenix,
moved to San Diego for high school, and
made her way back to Arizona for college,
whsre she attended the University ol
Arizona, Litfle did she knou when she
returned to San Diego after college to sell
advertisements for a local radio station,
that she would find the love of her life and
eventually find her way home lo Arizo*a.
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Struggles in parenting
Van Es met her future husband while he
was also working in sales at a San Diego
radio station. For those who listen to the
morning show on KISS 104.7 FM, that
might seem strange when you realize Van
Es's husband is Johnjay of the popular
Johnjay and Rich morning show. But,
back then, he hadn't really considered
being on the air. When it happened, the
couple embraced it and Van Es followed
her soon-to-be husband to Cincinnati,
where they soon married and set out to
start a family.
"l was 28 and just married," she
recalls. "We wanted to start a family, so
we bought a house with plenty of room
for lots of kids. I wanted a four or five
kids."
Unfortunately, things didn't go the
way the couple planned. After trying to
get pregnant for several years, Van Es
says they decided to try fertility treatments. The couple was ecstatic when
they found out they were expecting
identical twin girls. But the joy was
short-lived. One of the baby girls died
during the pregnancy. The other, born on
Valentine's Day in 2005, lived nine days.
ln the midst of the tragedy, the
couple had the chance to return home to
Arizona. Van Es says they were relieved
to return home and be close to familyher entire family lives in the state. That
was 17 years ago and, fortunately for the
Van Eses, it was also three children ago.
Three boys to be exact.
The story of how Van Es found
what she calls her true calling-being
a parent-is inspirational. "We had lost
the baby girls and we started looking at
alternatives," she explains. "We knew we
wanted to check into adopting, but that
can sometimes take a long time."
As another alternative, Van Es's
older sister, who had three of her own
children, volunteered to carry a baby for
them. With two great options, the couple
moved forward with their plans. Despite
the warnings that adoption could take a
while, Van Es says they were shocked
when they were accepted two days
later. lt was destiny and the couple soon
brought home their first son, Jake, now
11-years-old.
"l wanted a huge family," says Van
Es, laughing. So, they decided to also go
forward with her sister's offer to carry a
baby for them. All went well and second
son Kemp, now 1O-years-old, came
along a year later. Then, despite all the
earlier problems, Van Es became pregnant again, and this time she carried her
third son herself, giving birth to a healthy
baby boy, Dutch, now age 7. Van Es says
she couldn't be happier: "My passion is
to take care of kids."
Lining the passion
But Van Es doesn't stop at caring for her
own three boys. For several years now,
she has been volunteering at Hacienda
uProwN
I 32 I MARoH
2014
Healthcare here in the Valley.
"l tell the people at Hacienda that
they are the Valley's worst-kept secret,"
says Van Es, laughing. Hacienda
Healthcare provides "specialized services for medically fragile and chronically
ill infants, children and young adults in
Arizona." Hacienda operates a number ol
facilities, including a main campus and
two medical group homes.
"Unfortunately, most people haven't
heard of Hacienda," explains Van Es.
"They do so much for these kids, many
of whom are from abusive homes or
have been removed from their parents.
The state gives Hacienda money for the
kids' medical needs, but nothing to use
toward their quality of life, their food,
their clothing, or entertainment."
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So Van Es does what she can by
volunteering her time, visiting the babies,
and going to see the kids at the group
homes, often taking them to movies or
shows. "My boys have been around the
kids at Hacienda all their lives. They love
to go visit. Family means so much to us. I
want to share it with kids who don't have
that."
^llarirrg healtht
Van Es says the family enjoys staying
active. "lf you have a healthy life, you'll
have a happy mind and be happy."
At home, the Van Es family loves to
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stay active, whether it's in the pool, up
in Pinetop during the summer, hiking in
Phoenix, or riding bikes.
"You hear so much about childhood obesity now," explains Van Es.
"One day I was talking about it with my
friend Shandi Rooney, who owns Studio
Mix in Scottsdale. We had heard about
how much better off kids are if they get
exercise before they go to school, so
we decided we'd gather up some of my
kids' friends and work out at the school
a couple of mornings each week." Little
did she know that her idea for a casual
gathering would turn into a new project.
"Shandi and I talked about it and
she volunteered to put together an exercise program for the kids, so we went in
to talk to the principal about it. We had
no idea how much was involved." After
going through all the school requirements-creating a proposal, getting a
teacher sponsor, making sure the area
was available and not in use by the official before-school programs, and then
getting district approval-Rooney and
Van Es officially got the green light to
start Hopi Fit Club at Hopi Elementary
School in Arcadia in January 2014.
ln just the first two weeks, the free
program was a huge hit with the kids and
their parents at Hopi. "We already have
68 kids who come two days a week to
work out for 30 minutes before school,"
explains Van Es.
The activities are tailored to appeal
to elementary-age children. "We do relay
races, typical kids' games, even our own
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version of the Olympics," Van Es says.
The program was such a huge hit
that they ended up with corporate sponsors: Burger King is providing apples and
decided to use his celebrity to help the
community.
"Johnjay and Rich airs on 13 stations now," Van Es explains. "With such
a large platform, we can use it to help so
many."
Van Es is very much involved in
the Johnjay and Rich Care for Kids
Foundation and the Christmas Wish
program. "Last year at Christmas, we
bought gifts for 87 kids here in Arizona,"
she says.
One of the new projects she is most
passionate about is The Heart Gallery.
This interactive photographic and audio
exhibit goes out to big events, such
as sporting venues and concerts. The
public is invited in to check out photos
of children currently in the Arizona foster
care system. You have a chance to see
their pictures, read their stories, and
leave an email so someone with the state
foster care system can contact you. You
can get a look at The Children's Heart
Gallery, which lists some of the Arizona
children looking for a "forever family,"
online at www.childrensheartgallery.org.
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Van Es says that, despite her husband's
notoriety and her compassion for children, they really are just a normal family.
They love hanging out at home wiih
the kids, going to sporting events, and
catching a bite of something healthy
at ChopShop in Scottsdale, "Oh, and
we love to go to True Food (at Biltmore
Fashion Park). We eat there every week.
It's our favorite place."
Van Es says her desire to help all
water bottles, and Safeway is supplying
water. Other sponsors now include Ouest
bars, Studio Mix, and Johnjay and Rich.
"We have other schools in the district
interested in the program and we've even
had inquiries from other districts in the
statef'says Van Es.
those other children is really quite simple.
"l want every child to have the opportunity
to be the best they can be in this lifel'
Despite such a hectic lifestyle, Van
Es says her life is, at last, complete. "We
love Arizona, the quality of life here, and
the way we can raise our family."
Oh, and just in case they weren't
Tnrkling thr.{oster ffffe srstent
busy enough, the Van Es family also
rescues dogs. Dogs? Plural? As in more
Van Es says she couldn't be more content with her life. While her husband's
local celebrity status does have its challenges at times, Van Es says they both
rvARCH
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than one in a home filled with all those
boys? Van Es laughs, "We actually have
four rescue dogs now."