Andrea’s Hope helping young families through the hardship of illness

Mark and Mary Hudachek founded Andrea’s Hope as a Missouri nonprofit in 2014 named in honor of their daughter Andrea who passed away in 2012 after battling cancer since she was first diagnosed in 2010.

Hope is the bedrock of human virtue; determination, persistence, faithfulness, patience, generosity, and every form of human kindness; a person cannot lay the foundation of virtue without hope. Hope is integral to both the survival of the human race, innovation of human intellect, and the pursuit of happiness in the human soul.

No matter what terrible circumstance a person might face, it is hope that plays the most integral role in successfully navigating the passage between an avalanche of sorrow and the desperate abyss.

Perhaps that is why in Greek mythology hope is packaged with all manner of suffering; hope is the penultimate piece found at the bottom of Pandora’s jar. Hope is that unimpeachable wisdom which gives people enough of a push to get out of bed in the morning and to put one foot in front of the other.

Of course, there is no guarantee that hope will lead to happiness or virtue to which a person may aspire, but without hope such would be impossible.

Hope’s purpose in human life is intrinsically and unmistakably essential, but it can often be harder to find and share than it is to say.

Andrea was born the second of three children, squarely between her older brother Joseph and her younger brother Benjamin.

“As a girl, she was very pleasant and quieter,” Mary, Andrea’s mother, said of her daughter. “She always wanted to be a wife and a mom,” she said. And according to Mary, Andrea was a loving mother.

Andrea married her husband Anthony Pipp in 2007.

“He’s a kind and intelligent man,” said Mary, Mark (Andrea’s father) nodded his assent. “She had a strong, quiet faith,” said Mary. “They were a beautiful couple,” said Mark.

Andrea was already the mother of two by 2010 when she was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a form of brain cancer that grows along the brainstem.

“It’s extremely dangerous to operate on because of its proximity to the brainstem,” said Mark.

“Anthony did a lot of research to find the best treatment,” said Mark. Through Anthony’s research and from talking with experts they learned that surgery was still safer than other treatment options.

“They chose treatments that were in Tulsa,” said Mark. For Anthony and Andrea at the time, that meant traveling from their home all the way in Alabama. “That’s when we started to realize just how difficult this could be for young families,” he said. That is, to travel long distances for sometimes unknown amounts of time in order to receive necessary treatment with the uncertainty of success while still having the responsibility of looking after young children.

Mark and Mary told The Salem News of a prayer group in Tulsa that took Anthony and Andrea under their wing, and that group is one of the inspirations that the Hudacheks pulled from when organizing Andrea’s Hope.

Remarkably, the first two surgeries in 2010 were successful and life became relatively normal again for Andrea and her family—she and Anthony had their third child in 2011.

In 2012, when the cancer returned, 27-year-old Andrea was pregnant once again. The doctor told Andrea that if they operated, the baby would not make it. Andrea refused the surgery; she was 14 weeks pregnant when both she and her unborn child died on April 1, 2012.

On the day Andrea passed away, Mark and Mary witnessed a lily of the valley blooming in their garden—an event that has both a personal and poetic spiritual meaning for the Hudacheks. That was Andrea’s favorite flower, also according to legend, when Mary the mother of Jesus wept at the foot of the cross, her tears transfigured into fragrant lilies of the valley.

Mark and Mary Hudachek told The Salem News that they find their hope squarely within the framework of their Christian faith. One of the key tenets of that faith is found in Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi. Throughout his ministry Paul was no stranger to insurmountable pain and suffering; he wrote of the ultimate good that his suffering was having on those around him.

“It is my firm expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but will act with complete fearlessness, now as always, so that Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by my life or by my death,” he wrote. “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1)

According to the Hudacheks, throughout Andrea’s battle with cancer, that is a mindset she embraced.

“Many were praying for miraculous healing and some believed that God would heal her,” said Mary with tears very nearly resurfacing as she spoke to The Salem News sitting in her living room near a picture of Andrea that hangs on the wall. There’s something that Mary said Andrea told her while she was nearing the end that has stuck with her.

“I hope he does something big,” Andrea told her mother. “Little miracles happen all the time and people forget.”

Andrea told her mother that she knew God could heal her if he wanted to, but that her hope was that regardless the outcome of her diagnosis, others would remember Christ’s impact on her life.

“This is big,” said Mary. According to both Mary and Mark, they’ve seen Andrea’s story change lives, including their own, and they hope to continue changing lives by her example.

Andrea’s Hope Foundation, first registered as a Missouri nonprofit in October 2014, carries on the spirit of Andrea, her witness and example of sacrifice as a wife and mother, according to the Hudacheks.

They are always searching for people to help. Andrea’s Hope operates by “joining together with local communities through the love of the family of Jesus Christ to provide financial support and encouragement to young families with mothers facing a life-threatening illness,” according to their mission statement. The Hudacheks were inspired by the love and kindness that prayer group in Tulsa showed their daughter and son-in-law when they were strangers—a young couple in need. That group even helped cover some of their expenses. The Hudacheks hope that they will inspire others to do likewise. They also hope that any young families they help through difficult times will take to heart the strength of character that Andrea exhibited and that they will be able to weather the storms of life, believing that the storm will pass.

There are three primary ways that Andrea’s Hope needs people to help.

Spiritually: Pray for the families in need.

Physically: Be a connection for Andrea’s Hope to your local church and community organizations.

Financially: Andrea’s Hope is supported by private and corporate donations. Checks and money orders can be made to “Andrea’s Hope Foundation”.

In each of those three areas, support can come in whatever size people feel inclined to help.

To learn more about Andrea’s Hope and to get involved, you can contact the Hudacheks at (417) 755-9541 or andreashopefoundation@gmail.com.

Anthony Pipp has since married (Clair Franklin) after relocating to Dent County with the kids a few years ago.