EmpowerHER Divorce and Parenting Coach: Toledo Service Helps Parents Cope

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June 13, 2023

No one enters marriage thinking that one day it will end in divorce. Yet, unfortunately, many marriages DO end in divorce and it can leave a person feeling like their entire life is crashing down around them. According to local divorce and parenting coach, Hannelore Pena, “Divorce is really a death, causing you to lose so many things physically and metaphorically.”

Ms. Pena knows firsthand, as she was divorced after many years of marriage when her son was just six months old. He is now five years old, and she has co-parenting as well as single parenting experience. She is a trauma-informed, certified coach and the goal of EmpowerHER Divorce and Parenting Coaching is to empower women to move past the extreme difficulties of divorce.

Ms. Pena was born in the Philippines and raised in American Samoa. She came to Pennsylvania when she was 19 and has education backgrounds in theology and early childhood. But it was from her experiences working in the nonprofit sector with the most vulnerable in society that would shift her to becoming a certified divorce and parenting coach.

Pena says she always gravitated to empowering people and just felt she had something to give. She would say that coaching found her, not the other way around. She can also relate well due to her own personal experiences of going through divorce. Her experiences help her to understand others on a much deeper level.

Coaching vs. counseling

“My work focuses on healing the relationship we have with ourselves by rebuilding self-trust, cultivating self-love, self-acceptance, and self compassion,” says Ms. Pena. She said that when something traumatic such as divorce happens, it can unearth some core wounds from our past. She is not a licensed therapist telling people what they should do, but rather a coach who listens, asking the pertinent questions at the right time that lead the women to a more insightful way of looking at things. Ultimately, she helps them rebuild self-trust.

“I don’t have your answer, but YOU do,” Pena says. When an individual reconnects with one’s self, taking a deep look inside of themselves, they ultimately feel empowered and have the capacity to not only show up for themselves but also for their children.

Is this healing approach right for you?

Words such as coaching, therapy, or counseling might seem intimidating to some, or maybe you still are not sure how they differ or which one may benefit you. Because Ms. Pena understands people’s hesitation to dabble in the unknown, she offers a free 15-minute phone consultation where you may ask her questions and get a better idea if this would be a good fit for you.

Taking it a step further, she offers one free 30-minute session where you are able to bring your agenda to work through, assessing whether or not this coaching style is something you feel you can benefit from going forward. It is important to remember this is coaching, not counseling. If Ms. Pena feels there are things out of her scope, she will refer clients to a licensed therapist or psychotherapist.

EmpowerHER is here to help you be seen, heard, and take responsibility for your healing. For more information about EmpowerHER, as well as information regarding an upcoming Healing and Divorce miniseries in collaboration with divorce coach Ashleigh Deweese, visit empowerherdivorce.com or find her on Instagram @empowerherdivorce.

Dealing with Divorce: How to Create a New Normal

2023 Fathers Day Giveaway

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Digital Media

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June 12, 2023

Cold brew maker — A lucky winner will receive this coffee machine.

Just Toledo Brings Natural and Biodegradable to New Downtown Location

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Sneha Kamath

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June 10, 2023

Just Toledo, a zero-waste community endeavor that helps people access cleaner products and make lifestyle changes to support a healthier environment, has opened a location downtown! Structured according to the “milk man model,” Just Toledo is set up so that the price of each product includes a $3 refundable deposit that is repaid to customers when they return the containers that each product was delivered in. Customers interested in purchasing a product to participate in Just Toledo’s green/environmentally friendly initiative should place orders before midnight on Wednesday and the products will be delivered by Saturday.

The environmentally conscious approach of Just Toledo applies to more than just its packaging and delivery methods—all products are made in small batches using natural, biodegradable ingredients. See Just Toledo’s about page for more information about product ingredients and how the company was established.

New downtown location: Just Toledo, 909 Jefferson Ave. [email protected] justtoledo.net

New Local Roots Juice Co. Location Coming Soon in Sylvania

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Sneha Kamath

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June 9, 2023

Local Roots Juice Company is a healthy smoothie/juice/food company built on the philosophy that “life is too short to not choose the donut.” Regardless of which foods you may prefer on a regular basis, you can count on the menu at Local Roots Juice Co. for healthy options that range from juice cleanses and superfood smoothies to bowls and toast. With one location in Perrysburg, Local Roots Juice Co. is excited to announce that it will soon be opening another location in Sylvania! The new Sylvania location will be at 5441 Main St., and is expected to open by Fall 2023. See the entire Local Roots Juice Co. menu here.

UToledo’s Ritter Planetarium Reopens with Upgraded Projection System

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Sneha Kamath

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June 8, 2023

On March 31, The University of Toledo reopened Ritter Planetarium to the public and introduced its new Digistar 7, a state-of-the-art digital projection system. With this new system, Ritter Planetarium is able to offer visitors an upgraded viewing experience, featuring higher quality, 4K imagery, as well as live streamed events and shows from around the world.

Dr. Michael Cushing, a professor of physics and astronomy and director of Ritter Planetarium, shared the new possibilities afforded by the new Digistar 7 technology, stating, “now we have the ability to do things like fly through the rings of Saturn or take a tour of the Pleiades star cluster.”

To celebrate the upgrade of Ritter Planetarium, the first program on display after the planetarium reopened was one that had never been shown before, called Stars of the Pharaohs, narrated by actor John Rhys-Davies. Through the show, audience members were transported to ancient Egypt and gained insight into the perspective of ancient Egyptians as they discovered the stars and used this knowledge to make calendars, temples, and pyramids.

Regardless of which show visitors attend, standard parts of the Ritter Planetarium experience include: a live, guided tour of the Toledo night sky, an immersive, full-dome show, an open-ended Q&A session, and (weather-permitting) a visit to the Brooks Observatory to use UToledo’s Celestron 14 Edge HD Telescope. To see more about Ritter Planetarium show schedules, visit this page.

Providing Community in Toledo’s Junction Area: Summer camps at the Art Tatum Zone

By

Julie Pompa

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June 6, 2023

It’s all in the Zone – after school, weekend and summer programs, support services in the schools, programs for new parents, community events, and of course, art and music. The Art Tatum Zone supports families in the Junction community of Toledo as they build academic excellence, housing stability and economic self-sufficiency.

The Zone, established in 2018, encompasses an area of one to two miles around the childhood home of legendary jazz pianist Art Tatum on City Park Rd.

“We grew up in this community. We’re spreading the legacy of who he was and what he accomplished,” explained Christine Sweeney, executive director. And their approach is to improve the human condition one person at a time, one family at a time, one block at a time.

Building community

The Zone offers a full range of classes and programs year-round, primarily along the schedule of Toledo Public Schools. Programs are held primarily at Tabernacle Church, 531 Pinewood, where Sweeney’s husband Dr. Calvin Sweeney is pastor (as well as president of the Zone). Other programs take place at the McClinton Nunn Community Room, 425 Nebraska Ave., and at the Toledo Museum of Art. Through the Zone’s affiliation with the Ohio Department of Education, programs and camps are offered at no cost to students and families. This summer’s programs include:

ATZ Sports and Arts Camp – full day summer camp for students in grades 1 – 6, from Monday through Friday, 8:30am to 4pm daily – June 12 through July 28 – this program focuses on mindfulness and imaginative activities, performing arts, STEM activities (including building drones this summer, according to Sweeney), and basic sports skills (traditional sports plus ‘old-time’ sports like kickball). Space is limited, and available at Tabernacle and McClinton Nunn, plus Calvary Bible Chapel, 3740 W. Alexis Rd., and a South Toledo location that will be announced soon.
Other programs – Accounting Camp for middle and high school students; a program in construction, architecture and engineering offered through Junior Achievement; and STEM-letics in partnership with the University of Toledo

Learn more about these summer programs, as well as after-school programs, on the Zone’s website.

The Zone also serves residents of the neighborhood year-round. Its community service features six areas of focus (the result of conversations within the community): Education, Economic Development, Community & Family Engagement, Health & Well-Being, Leadership & Personal Development and Neighborhood Stabilization. Programs as diverse as martial arts and chess to parenting and business training are offered regularly at the Zone.

Furthering Tatum’s legacy

Born in Toledo, blind in one eye and partially sighted in the other, Art Tatum was largely self-taught in piano, learning and memorizing music. He excelled in his beginnings in Toledo and built a highly regarded skill in improvisational piano. Even though he had a short life (he died at age 47 in 1956), he became one of the greatest jazz piano players who ever lived, inspiring performers from the 1940s to present with his style and innovation.

The Zone is currently in the process of restoring Tatum’s childhood home and plans to create a museum and community center there in the future.

“We rebuilt the exterior foundation and are replacing windows,” Sweeney said. “Next, we’ll have community conversations about what we need here and how we can build the house around it.

“I’m so pleased at how responsive families have been in supporting these programs,” said Sweeney, a 20-year educator. They continue to open new locations and build on Tatum’s legacy.