Page 12 - CJA Spirit Spring 2021

And on the days that followed,
friends, family, neighbors – strangers
– helped hold their family up.
When Jenn Kirkpatrick graduated from
Cor Jesu in 2000, she never could have
imagined needing that kind of support
just 12 years later. At 18, she headed off to
DePaul University in Chicago to pursue a old son, Oakes, to CHD one year prior.
marketing degree. While she was there, she Right away, the two shared a bond – a
got a job at Gibson’s Steak House where she bond that quickly grew into a friendship.
met Mark Hinkle. As their relationship grew, They talked about their sons, about
so did their shared passion for restaurants. raising their daughters, and about
Ready to begin their next chapter, the supporting other heart families.
pair moved back to St. Louis. They worked in As their friendship grew, so did their
different jobs in the restaurant industry and families. Both the Hinkles and the Ortyls
soon welcomed their daughter, Maddie, in welcomed baby girls in the years that
2009. Ollie came a few years later. His death followed. And as the Hinkles found ways
ALUMNAE ENTREPRENEUR Maddie coming up to her in bed and Foundation (a 501(c)(3) non-profit
to be joyful in the life they had, they also
changed everything – or, almost everything.
found ways to honor the life they had lost.
Right after Ollie died, Jenn remembers
They started the Ollie Hinkle Heart
asking her to make breakfast.
organization) in 2015, which allowed them
“I had a 3-year-old,” Jenn said. “I had
to continue supporting research, but also
to get up and make breakfast.”
provide emotional support for families
So, she made breakfast, and
going through CHD with their child with
found a way to focus forward.
“Through the love we received, we found
Since its start, the Ollie Hinkle Heart
peace, hope and strength to keep going.”
Foundation (OHHF) has raised over
They kept going, but in a different direction.
$3 million dollars and has grown to a
In the wake of Ollie’s death, Jenn things like care packages and hot dinners.
and Mark started fundraising for the five-person full-time staff. In 2017, St. Louis
Children’s Heart Foundation. Children’s Hospital partnered with OHHF
“It was a way for us to channel our pain on the Ollie Hinkle Heart Foundation’s
into doing good for others.” Mental Health Initiative – a mental health
“ Through and fundraising so bigger than anything we imagined,” Jenn
program for parents of children with CHD.
Jenn began volunteering
“The foundation has grown into something
much that it became an
the love we
business, but here we are. It’s successful
received, we unofficial part-time job. said. “We never set out to create a non-profit
Then, one day, about six
because it is personal and it’s our passion.”
months after Ollie passed,
found peace, Jenn and Maddie went to While building on that passion,
hope and The Magic House. While her they grew another.
Since they were dating, Mark and
daughter played, another
strength to mom caught Jenn’s eye. Jenn had a dream of one day opening
-JENN KIRKPATRICK HINKLE '00” the same age as Maddie. it, the Ortyls had the same dream.
their own restaurant. As fate would have
She had a daughter about
keep going.
In 2016, the families became business
Her name was Becky Ortyl.
She and her husband, Greg,
Over the years, they’ve grown one
had lost their 15-month- partners and opened Olive+Oak.

10 SPIRIT MAGAZINE SPRING 2021