The Gift of Greg

Karen Hoppe on My Special-Needs Son as an Agent of Grace

Our youngest child turned 23 last Friday. Because he was starting a new job on Monday, he had Friday off, so he celebrated by taking his parents out to lunch, with money he had earned. He attended a dance that night, partied with his friends on Saturday, and went to his favorite steakhouse for Sunday dinner with his parents and the sister who lives in town—with Mom and Dad picking up the tab this time.

It was pretty much the perfect birthday weekend.

The Call in the Night

Flash back 23 years to his birth: the culmination of an unwanted and difficult pregnancy, a pregnancy I had greeted with . . .

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Karen Hoppe is a stay-at-home mom of three—two grown and on their own, and Greg, who lives at home. She married fellow Capitol Hill staffer David Hoppe 37 years ago. Karen is Anglican and the rest of the family is Roman Catholic.

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