Meet Lauri Hennessy
Mthr Land sinterviewed Lauri Hennessey in March of 2021
MTHR LAND: What do you do and how many children do you have?
LH: I am the Chief Executive Officer of the League of Education Voters, a statewide educational advocacy organization in Washington state.
I have three (all grown!)
MTHR LAND: At what stage in your career did you become a mom? How was that transition?
LH: I was 32 the first time and managed a staff of 17 communications people in the federal government. It was a high-level job that I loved.
The transition was tough. I loved the job so my daughter was home for two months and then into a daycare in my federal building. It was so hard to leave her every day but I went back full-time.
MTHR LAND: Did you change your trajectory after becoming a mother?
LH: It didn’t at first. The second child came two years later and it was tougher for me. We transitioned to a nanny and she watched the two girls. When we had the third child three years later (for three kids under five), I just could not imagine it anymore. So I made the big decision.
MTHR LAND: Did you become less ambitious or more ambitious?
LH: I left my job and decided to work from home when the kids were small. My job was amazingly important to me but being a mom felt like it was getting lost in the shuffle. So I started running a public relations business from home when the kids were five, three and three months. I did that for about eight years while the kids were young, running my business, home with the kids, volunteering everywhere, running a Camp Fire group, coaching sports, head of the PTA. I even wrote a parenting column for a bunch of newspapers. Money was tough, and that was stressful. They were exhausting years but I now don’t regret them one bit. They are fond, fond memories now. I went back into the more demanding workplace when the youngest was just graduating from elementary school and moving to middle school. I have been busy ever since.
MTHR LAND: How did you find your why?
LH: I was so blessed because I truly feel I have had a fantastic career and managed to be there for my kids. When you ask me what the best job is I have ever had, I would tell you now. But it would have been tough indeed to do it when my kids were small. So, to answer this question (I think), I learned to live in the moment when I was home with the kids and squeeze every memory out that I could. I always knew it was not indefinite.
MTHR LAND: Tell us about a time where you had to make a tough choice between career and family?
LH: Oh, there were many of those moments. I can tell you one that stands out. I used to lead this end of school tradition. Every summer I would take about 30 kids to our local beach and roast burgers and hotdogs over a bonfire at the beach (we live on Vashon Island). I took pictures of the kids. The moms all hung out. This was my most treasured day of the day. I went back to work at Edelman in Seattle, a large PR agency. The last day of school the year my youngest was ending 6th grade, I was sent on a trip and could not host the celebration. I coordinated with other moms, who I made call me with constant updates. But I remember being at a press conference and crying by myself after.
MTHR LAND: Ouch, that must have been really hard. Did you have support? What was that like?
LH: I had child care for the first three years, a nanny for two more. Then I was with them for eight years (with some babysitting sometimes). We made it work.
MTHR LAND: What do you wish you knew then that you know now?
LH: How quickly it all went. Everyone always said that and it was annoying then, but it really did go quickly. I am so glad I coached their teams, that we slept in a tent outside just for fun sometimes, that we took road trips. We had a great time. So I wish I would have known then that it would fly by and I would be so glad I did it. I also wish I would have known that the time would come again when I would be more professionally successful. Going from being successful to “not” for a period of years was a huge ego adjustment for me. Now I am in the kind of position I used to always plan to have someday. I have missed it and wish I would have had faith the day would come again.
MTHR LAND: Tell us about your career trajectory, can you think of any defining moments that were hard at the time but made the difference in the end?
LH: So many. I have had a number of jobs, from media to government, public relations agencies to nonprofit organizations. I have run my own business, been a senior manager, freelanced. I have tried many different things. People look at my LinkedIn profile and say my career looks great and varied. I joke with them that it often felt accidental. I didn’t have a grand, master plan. I went with my gut. But it has been a grand adventure. Now I am starting on my Master’s (at 57!) because I want to teach communications down the road. You never have to say you are done!
MTHR LAND: Last question. What do you want to tell mothers who might be feeling stuck in a season of life?
LH: Don’t believe it. Embrace it. Just make it pencil out financially and find support, make friends to talk to. But you will get through it. These days will fly by, if you choose to stay home, and you will have more chances ahead. If you choose to use a nanny, as I did for a while, don’t be jealous (I often was!) but just enjoy the time and continue working on your career. If you choose to keep working outside the home, don’t feel guilty. Do the best you can, though I personally found it really hard. All I can tell you is the time will fly. Also, if you are lucky enough to have a spouse, there are two people here. You both should have responsibility and help out. My husband learned along the way that when he came home from work (when I was working from home), the kids were HIS as I left and caught my breath. Keep the communication going. We both look back on the whole chapter now very fondly. One last thing: mentor other women. Once you are on the other side, find moms in need of a hand and offer it.