Ellie Ledin (00:01.164)
Hey everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Inheritance of Hope podcast. Today I’m really excited because we have a special guest with a really unique perspective and I think I’m gonna learn a lot and I think you are too. So why don’t you introduce yourself?
Tessa Martinson (00:17.201)
Thanks for watching.
Tessa Martinson (00:20.933)
My name is Tessa Martinson and I am the mom of two kiddos, my daughter Gentry’s nine, or my daughter Gentry’s 12 and my son AJ is nine. And we were first introduced to Inheritance of Hope seven years ago when my husband John was diagnosed with cancer.
Ellie Ledin (00:40.334)
Wow, that seems so long ago and we’re coming up at the time of recording of our National Legacy Day, which is when Inheritance of Hope was founded. And it’s crazy because that was 18 years ago. And first, whatever reason, 2007 does not seem like 18 years ago. So when you say that you were introduced to Inheritance of Hope seven years ago, I’m like, that doesn’t make sense.
Tessa Martinson (01:08.005)
Ha ha!
Ellie Ledin (01:08.686)
I feel like we’re just like a little baby company, but yeah, that’s really, I’m glad that you were introduced to Inheritance of Hope. How did you hear about this organization?
Tessa Martinson (01:24.497)
Well, we were, we live in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and so.
We were just navigating the beginning phases of what John’s diagnosis looked like and all of the changes that were happening so fast to our family. And a couple of friends in our community had heard of Inheritance of Hope because a relative of theirs had been served. And so they shared with us what was available and they asked us to check out this organization. And so we did.
And that was kind of the beginning steps. We got connected and registered for a retreat. That was the only offering at the time, were the legacy retreats. And so that just kind of started our journey and it’s been…
kind of a real full circle blessing in that, in that our family, weren’t able to participate together in the retreat. John’s health declined too quickly. And at the time of our retreat, he just wasn’t well enough to go. And so at that point we withdrew and
Our children were five and two and so they were very young and didn’t really understand all of what was happening. We hadn’t shared a whole lot yet knowing there were still some things in limbo with that. But that was the summer of 2018 and then John passed away that fall in October. But in January or maybe December, we got a call and Inheritance of Hope staff and team were trying a new format.
Tessa Martinson (03:06.499)
a new curriculum, kind of a new focus for families. And they were wanting to host a smaller, more intimate retreat with a group of widows who had either lost their husbands or had.
situation where their health declined and weren’t able to go on their retreat. And so this mini retreat of four families, four widows and their children, focused on that life after last season, but just celebrated our family and our-
our love and our memory making that continued. And so that January of 2019, we did a mini legacy retreat with those families and the staff and the volunteers that we met. I’m still in touch with all of them today and connected to all of them. Some are no longer working with inheritance of hope, but just we made quick friends on that retreat. And so I knew I would be connected for a long time to inheritance of hope just by
who those volunteers and staff were as friends, as people that walked alongside us through John’s journey and then now in this retreat mode.
But it really, in the follow-up afterwards, when everyone else’s life felt like it went back to normal, we were continuing to get texts and messages from our volunteer and from staff of happy birthday or remembering us a year later on the anniversary of John’s death. And it just really connected my heart to inheritance of hope of feeling remembered. And that that was such a treasure, like I said, when it felt like…
Ellie Ledin (04:46.702)
Mm.
Tessa Martinson (04:51.353)
The world was just going on and everything had gone back to normal for everybody else, which was my perspective. knowing our world was so different and that others remembered that and saw us in that journey. And so that was really special to just continue those friendships along the way.
Ellie Ledin (05:11.02)
Yeah.
Yeah, I’ve talked to other widows specifically on this podcast and they shared a very similar experience of it’s so isolating because, you know, my world was just altered beyond what I could have ever predicted. And then everyone else is just going to school, going to church as if nothing happened. And so to talk to other people who are in the same boat was a huge sense of relief for them.
Tessa Martinson (05:22.257)
Great.
Tessa Martinson (05:35.259)
Great.
Ellie Ledin (05:42.414)
Also that sense of being remembered, that, I mean, that’s just so crucial to feel like you belong somewhere, even though it feels like your life is way different than you ever anticipated.
Tessa Martinson (05:45.615)
Yes. Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (05:53.061)
Mm-hmm.
Right, right. And we, don’t want to sound like we didn’t have some things. We had a wonderful network of support and our church family and our extended family in the area that really cared for us along the way. But finding those connections of other people who understood what we had gone through, where all of our stories are a little bit different, but just kind of that common ground of
Ellie Ledin (06:12.558)
you
Tessa Martinson (06:25.295)
We’ve all faced terminal illness and caregiving and loss, and we all have young children that we’re walking through grief with. It was just a great circle of support that we met in our retreat. And then as the years to follow came and COVID came and all the different nuances with that, but inheritance of hope continued to grow and support families in new ways that allowed us to continue to be connected, that a retreat was like.
said and done and that was a wonderful experience. But then some of the online components that came on through COVID, we participated in some of the family game nights and the vision events and things that just brought families back together and started to renew the friendships that we had had with our volunteers and staff, but then also meeting new families and getting connected that way.
led to me actually volunteering for some of the online weekends and events that happened.
during that season with COVID. And then in 2022, that was kind of the full circle blessing that I alluded to, but joined the staff of Inheritance of Hope and helping develop the Hope Hub program and bringing that idea into fruition and bring it to life in our Hope Hub program. And so just knowing that the mission of supporting and walking alongside families was something so meaningful to us
And then to be able to do that with other families and be a part of their story and their journey has really been an honor. And it’s been something that has kind of pulled together all of the different experiences I’ve had in life from education and ministry and to really be able to put them together in a creative way. Now, it’s been awesome to join the staff and just see how.
Tessa Martinson (08:29.595)
programs continue to grow and serve families across the country.
Ellie Ledin (08:33.454)
Yeah, I mean talk about a great kind of conglomeration of past experiences, skills, passions, pain points to kind of lead you to this season. And I want to keep going on that train of thought, before we go too far, I want to kind of circle back and just kind of hear a little bit more about.
Tessa Martinson (08:43.675)
Thank you.
Yeah.
Ellie Ledin (08:56.482)
your family’s story and maybe the timeline or just feel free to dive into more details about what illness has looked like in your family.
Tessa Martinson (08:59.451)
Sure.
Tessa Martinson (09:03.385)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (09:07.203)
Yeah, the beginning of it all, John was a farmer and so…
Harvest had just finished, the fall is always so busy and almost a 24 hour a day sort of cycle. And so when Harvest was done, he always had kind of that let down of maybe getting a bad cold and just taking some long naps and then jumping back into the winter work of farming. And John was always like the Energizer bunny. really, those were the only times I ever saw him nap. Like at the end of a long season of harvest or planting.
But things just weren’t right. He was sleeping a lot and had a lot of headaches and just was not himself. And we kind of moved through the holiday season with Thanksgiving and Christmas and just really he was struggling health-wise, which was very unusual. I kind of checked off all.
all the boxes as we continued to go back to the doctor. And it wasn’t mono, it wasn’t Lyme disease, wasn’t, you know, all of the things that you need to check first. And January, we really dug in and switched doctors and kind of got a little more specialized and got to the bottom of it. And
kind of connected a few more dots for our family about five years prior to John’s diagnosis with…
Tessa Martinson (10:33.253)
with the cancer that he had then, he had melanoma, skin cancer, and had a mole removed and had lymph nodes checked and went through skin checks often and went through everything free and clear. We thought that was kind of done, that that episode was over and we were very thankful for that. Well, the melanoma was back and it had metastasized to his liver, lungs and brain. And so that was just kind of shocking in that the time that had passed,
and not anticipating that again or really knowing that it might come back that way.
So we started right away on radiation treatments, which started on his brain, which kind of started to just impact him a little bit cognitively, not super drastic or noticeable to most people, but just within our home life and things there. His treatments, he had oral medications, so he was able to do some targeted therapy treatments, which really
did wonderful things for improvement with the tumors in his liver and lungs. And that was very encouraging, but the brain is such a big mystery and there’s so many things you can know and so many things that you don’t know about.
the levels of medication getting to his brain and how that would respond over time throughout treatment. And so we, after that first round of radiation, he was really doing well. The headaches had subsided. He was able to go to work. And I just am really thankful for both of our places of employment. I was the administrator at a Christian school and he was farming for a Christian family that really
Tessa Martinson (12:28.823)
made the accommodations that we needed for treatment and for schedules and we were able to keep our kids on a fairly regular routine with all the other crazy stuff going on in our life. That was really important to just have that consistency for them. And John just continued with appointments but mainly just the check-ins, the lab work. We had, I felt a fairly
Ellie Ledin (12:37.102)
Good night.
Tessa Martinson (12:56.823)
Simple treatment plan as far as his medication was in pill form and not needing to go in for infusions or that sort of thing. And so he was able to carry on with a lot of regular activities, needing more rest. was no longer able to drive as soon as they found out, that he had brain cancer, that that was something that could have possibly induced seizures or other things that you would not expect or know that could happen at any moment. So rides to work and
And being able to do what he could do was really fulfilling for him to continue when just the level of independence drastically changed when you can’t drive any longer. Just in one appointment that changed his life in that way. so over time he continued with some of those routines and
Ellie Ledin (13:38.52)
Bye.
Tessa Martinson (13:50.693)
The summer months were great. We were able to visit my family in Oregon and be a part of things. And in Oregon, there’s a lot of grass fires and summertime, you know, things that…
Oregon and California deal with a lot. And we were out there at that time and it was super smoky. And so we were all kind of congested and he was having some more headaches and I just thought, it’s got to be that smoke. It’s got to be the allergies. It’s got to be something and not wanting to like go there in my mind that things weren’t going well. when we got back, they, the headaches were more frequent and more often. And so we went in and the tumors in his brain were still growing and we’re really
impacting the good parts of his brain just by the pressure and how big they were. So we did another round of radiation which really…
I could tell was impacting just his thought processes and his speech and different components there. He was so sweet and I’m so thankful that I know with brain cancer, there are so many different ways that people change and that personalities change. And it’s no longer that person that you knew and that same way of interacting with them. And John, I’m so thankful, continued to be like his happy, easygoing,
loving self and like we’d have some nurses come in and help at home and he would say things like I don’t know what you’re doing but you sure do a good job and and he was just like so engaging right to the end and so that was just really sweet and I was so thankful that he was able to be home through all of that other than appointments we’d take him but just as far as daily living we just needed to do what we needed to do and taking doors off the
Ellie Ledin (15:25.156)
Aww.
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (15:44.611)
so that walkers and wheelchairs could fit through and easy access and different things.
Yeah, the second round of radiation really was kind of the start to the end. It very much changed his present state of headaches for that improvement, but then that was kind of the end of the summer, and he just continued. And about the time when our retreat was scheduled in August.
Ellie Ledin (16:12.898)
Thanks.
Tessa Martinson (16:14.853)
but the time that things really started changing quickly for us. And I felt like as soon as I got used to a new…
a new medication and dosage and how we did this, then something else would change or he’d need to be back in for other kinds of appointments. And so you kind of get your head wrapped around one phase of, okay, now we’re at the walker phase and then there’s a seizure and a couple of falls and now we’re at the wheelchair phase. And then there’s a few more days of not wanting to get out of bed and or being able to get out of bed. And then it’s.
in bed all the time phase and so just how quickly some of that changed I felt like like my head was kind of spinning and not really knowing what to expect but expecting that it’s going to be different the next day and so that was really hard I think in how quickly we saw those changes happening and he was able like I mentioned to be at home
And so our family and friends were able to just continue to be a part of his days in coming to visit or read scripture. Our kids would just be in and hanging out. They’d crawl up in bed with him and read to him or just take naps there. And so he was still very much there and with us in.
the day to day, that sort of thing. yeah, being able to see the changes so quickly, knew. My daughter Gentry at five knew that a lot was changing and going on for him. yeah, he had about two weeks on hospice and that was a really scary thing for me of just thinking about hospice that I thought it was just like.
Tessa Martinson (18:11.331)
you sign up and it’s over. And we didn’t have a lot of time, but the care and the support where the nurses that came in and said, you just need to be wife and mom. You don’t need to be the nurse too. And I just appreciated that part so much that I think caregivers do so much out of the love and commitment that we have for our loved one, for our spouse. And
I think that sometimes we feel like we shouldn’t pass off that responsibility because like I promised in sickness and in health to take care of you. And there were just some things that were really hard. And when somebody came in and said, you don’t have to do that. I can come in and do that. And you can be wife and mom and all the caring and all the support that you still need to do is so important. And so.
Ellie Ledin (18:47.853)
I am with.
Tessa Martinson (19:07.383)
That was really coming to the point to realize that the cancer had impacted so many things that having that extra support and knowing that if John wasn’t healed on this side of heaven that our hope and our trust and our faith, we knew that.
he would have a new body soon. And that happened after he died that passed away in October, mid October. And Gentry and I talked so much about how dad was brand new, how he wasn’t sick, how his legs worked, his mind work, he could open his eyes and he was brand new. His body wasn’t hurting. And I think that is definitely…
Ellie Ledin (19:45.166)
Thank
Tessa Martinson (20:00.213)
hard thing to walk through with your kids and being able to have those conversations about eternity and how much God loves us and cares for us and by no means did he promise life would be perfect. But being able to talk with him that he’s always with us no matter what’s happening and the hard and the good and
we’ve been able to see a lot of good that followed John’s death and inheritance of hope is one of the biggest ones, I think, in the fact that we never would know these people that we’ve connected with. We never would have met the staff, the volunteers, the other families had it not been for our journey. And knowing that that’s the good that comes out of the really hard places in our in our story brings a little bit of
brings a lot of comfort I would say but also some very redeeming parts of our story that we can share it with others, we can encourage others or we can be there when they’re…
in the low hard places too and that’s been really really special. Being a part of Hope Hub now, my kids are a part of that with me. It’s really fun that we can travel because we have one close to us, well kind of close in the cities in Minneapolis. It’s a little bit of a drive but just the friends that we have met through Hope Hub and the community that’s growing there and then in our other locations as well but
Ellie Ledin (21:23.409)
You sound like you’re driving a motorboat.
Tessa Martinson (21:37.211)
But the people who get it and those that just kind of understand as kids that you don’t have to talk about your parent that passed away all the time. When you know that someone else has experienced that too, there’s just kind of a little common thread that connects you and yeah, and you get it. No one’s going to ask you a silly question or embarrass you or that sort of thing. I think that might happen in ways that kids have kind of a struggle to
figure out how to respond or what to do but yeah that’s been really special for all of us to be able to continue in Hope Hub and being a part of those those programs too.
Ellie Ledin (22:09.132)
Yeah.
Ellie Ledin (22:19.95)
Man, having the transitions happen so quickly for your family. I mean, talk about a loss of control and finding a lot of hope in an eternal perspective, knowing that right now this is not all there is.
Tessa Martinson (22:30.853)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (22:38.255)
Right.
Ellie Ledin (22:41.952)
And that’s so satisfying because right now it’s really hard. And it seems like each member of your family, whether it was John, experiencing kind of a loss of autonomy, like I can’t drive anymore, or like, you know, progressing from a walker to wheelchair to in bed. And then obviously you experiencing that as a caregiver, as a spouse, but also your kids, like even if they’re little, they know.
Tessa Martinson (22:45.649)
Mm-hmm.
Tessa Martinson (22:54.896)
Great.
Tessa Martinson (23:08.069)
Mm-hmm.
Ellie Ledin (23:09.718)
something is happening even if their brain doesn’t fully know what is happening. Like it’s not like each member of your family had to adjust very quickly to things that were happening very quickly. How was that experience and what did you learn in that?
Tessa Martinson (23:15.141)
Great.
Tessa Martinson (23:23.001)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (23:30.641)
I think in my mind I wanted to have as I mentioned kind of the routines and consistency.
for my kids, for things that they could count on and they would just know that’s a part of our life. We go to school or daycare and we have family dinners still and all of those things gave us and going to church and all of that gave us that foundation of routine. And I think that really prepared us to handle the big changes that were out of the ordinary. That while life did kind of turn upside down,
The places where we could keep our family rhythms the same allowed us to really look at, now this part is really different and being able to navigate that together. We’ve always been a part of a church community. So that was one of our rhythms. We did evening devotions and prayer with our kids. And so that was part of it too. And we have some really cute videos of
Yeah, just what that looked like when they were little and know, crawling all over John. We would, you know, pray together. I did use my phone and record something because AJ was just like hugging and climbing all over him. But it was just like, it’s dad. And that’s what I’m going to do. He’s the jungle gym and I’m supposed to be praying, but I’m going to be playing. I think,
Ellie Ledin (25:01.42)
Mm-hmm.
Tessa Martinson (25:06.641)
continuing to, yeah, kind of keep that balance of the rhythm of life and then allowing us to face the big things. I know this is something that I did not think I would cry. Thank God it worked in my life that there were never moments of feeling despair or hopelessness. There was immense sadness for sure.
But I really felt like all of my life, all of my other experiences, all of the faithfulness that God had shown me.
was that rock and foundation that I could lean on in those, the hardest of hard times. And I think for my children to have a mom that was not falling apart, let them knew that their world was not falling apart. And I mean, there’s nothing worse than losing a parent or a spouse that like there’s a gaping hole in what should be your family unit. But our next steps and our next days,
Ellie Ledin (26:00.206)
you
Tessa Martinson (26:17.775)
We’re just trusting that all of God’s faithfulness through those years of my growing up and young adult life and now into family and for my kids, like their little years of growing up, that God’s faithfulness would continue. And there was like no reason to doubt that there was an alarm. There wasn’t panic. I think it was just, it felt like this kind of steadfast peace that this is the worst thing we’ve experienced, but
God’s gonna keep being faithful to us and whatever it looks like we don’t know in the days to come. And so I just, I’m really humbled by that and feeling that that God has been so faithful to me in the highs and lows of life and then what is the lowest of low.
continuing to walk right alongside our family and see my children laugh and thrive and have fun again. We did some special things and it probably took us, I don’t know, a month or so and we did a fun weekend away and stayed at a hotel and went to museums and laughed and played and it was like, you kind of remember the first big laughs again and
things like that and I think that’s the family life and love and legacy that I get to continue to build and grow with them. And so, yeah, those changes haven’t been.
breaking, but they have been kind of transforming in how, one, how we look at life and how we look at eternity and where our hope comes from and what our family’s foundation and faith looks like. But I think just having that testimony of God’s faithfulness through it all gives us that hope that he will be faithful in all the things to come as well. So.
Tessa Martinson (28:23.297)
Thank you.
Ellie Ledin (28:24.226)
There’s such a beautiful parallel there actually as you as the, you know, loving parent providing stability and routine and things that your kids could rely on and know this is things are changing, but this is my, you know, center. This is things are going on, but also like zoom out. feel like the Lord, like our loving father was doing that for you.
Tessa Martinson (28:41.413)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (28:52.133)
Mm-hmm.
Ellie Ledin (28:53.064)
I am your stability, you know? And it’s not in routines, it’s not in bedtime stories, but it’s in himself. Like he is the steadiness in the midst of a lot of change. And so like you as his child got to receive this steadfast love and peace that makes no sense. And so what you are going through.
Tessa Martinson (28:55.333)
Great.
Tessa Martinson (29:00.367)
Mm-hmm.
Great.
Tessa Martinson (29:14.373)
Great,
Ellie Ledin (29:17.324)
in the same way that you as a loving parent were providing that for your children where like, man, things are changing, but I know things are okay still. I can laugh. I’m safe to laugh. And I feel like that’s probably, you know, the Lord’s message to you as well as like you are safe to experience the hurt and the laughter and everything in between. Cause I am near.
Tessa Martinson (29:22.565)
Mm-hmm.
Tessa Martinson (29:28.358)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (29:31.749)
Mm-hmm.
Tessa Martinson (29:37.435)
Great.
Ellie Ledin (29:43.596)
your safety and what is constant in this.
Tessa Martinson (29:48.023)
Yeah, absolutely.
Ellie Ledin (29:51.404)
Yeah, sounds like you have learned a lot of things, even if it was not a situation that you would ever choose for yourself. It seems like that’s been a really refining process for you.
Tessa Martinson (29:57.859)
It’s me.
Great, great.
Tessa Martinson (30:07.877)
Yeah, it really has and I think
Yeah, I don’t know how people can walk through some of these things and not have that faith foundation or circle of support of family and friends and your church network. That was something that really made, I mean, it made all the difference for sure.
how I responded, how we as a family were supported and connected. And I knew that kind of prayer support and encouragement and the people that shared in different ways with us and ministered to us through those times, that those weren’t hollow, that those were.
opportunities and things that would be coming back. The scripture and the verses that were shared or songs that were texted to me and that we would play in the hospital room or when John was resting and we’re all hanging out or whatever. Those things were very redeeming, were encouraging and things we can go back to as truth, words of truth, words of scripture. I really felt that there were many times
that God just reinforced to me how living and active his word is and verses that I’ve read before or passages that we’re very familiar with rereading through a struggle or through a journey came to life in a different way or were a comfort in a different way or open my eyes to new things. so, you know, I thought, I knew what that verse is. I’ve read that before, but then looking at it through a different lens or through
Tessa Martinson (32:06.607)
through grief or through the pain of fast changes and feeling so uncertain, it spoke to me in a different way. And I thought that’s what living inactive means, that it’s not stale and something ancient for long ago, but something that was really pertinent to what we were walking through, the little Martinson family in Minnesota, it was for them that day.
Ellie Ledin (32:19.649)
No.
Tessa Martinson (32:34.639)
What amazing, I mean, that just is something that kind of like blows my mind too, that, that it can speak in such a new and fresh way. when, when you’re open to that and when you’re looking at that in light of a trial or adversity. So yeah, that was something that I really have like cherished and where that, that first of being living inactive, where his word has really been that for me. So. Yeah.
Ellie Ledin (32:38.903)
you
Ellie Ledin (33:04.14)
Yeah, there’s nothing like reading Job, the book, the story of Job for the first time when you’re not in a season that’s difficult. Like, like, was depressed. This is like a depressing story. You know, I don’t…
Tessa Martinson (33:13.19)
Sure.
Cough cough
Ellie Ledin (33:19.584)
And then when you are kind of in that dark night of the soul, if you are in grief, you are like, man, I feel like I am Job in this. It’s funny how different stories or scriptures in the Bible stand out in new ways.
Tessa Martinson (33:38.232)
Great.
Ellie Ledin (33:39.37)
are in that season. And so yeah, breathing, yeah, it’s living inactive. that’s nice. And then when you experience it, you just have a new lens and appreciation for it. Yeah, I’d love to hear that the transition of roles from, you know, being a family served from inheritance of hope, being
Tessa Martinson (33:41.445)
Mm-hmm.
Tessa Martinson (33:52.111)
Great.
Tessa Martinson (34:03.643)
Yeah.
Ellie Ledin (34:04.502)
you know, a caregiver, a widow in grief, and you know, still being a widow, still holding onto parts of that grief, but now being on staff at Inheritance of Hope, what has that transition of roles looked like for you, and how has your experience with grief equipped you for this season?
Tessa Martinson (34:27.985)
Yeah, after Joan passed away, really felt like, there were parts of me that really felt kind of like lost of what I should do next, which sounds kind of funny. My whole background was in education. And so I taught right out of college and my journey took me to the mission field as well, which is a big God story in that realm.
God really did something in my life and in my heart. I knew I wanted to teach forever and I thought, I’ve been called to teaching and maybe was not very humble in that, but I loved it, I was a good teacher, but I also went on my first mission trip and realized God was calling me into a whole new direction. I was like, well, wait a minute, who’s gonna teach my students and who’s gonna do this? And realized, there are a lot of people that are.
trained and equipped and called to teach. I’m not the only one that can do this. And so it was just a reminder that.
Ellie Ledin (35:25.966)
Okay.
Tessa Martinson (35:32.279)
His call, I mean, was obedience, but also to make a difference in the lives of children and their families. And he was revealing to me that I could do that in a lot of different ways, that it could be teaching, it could be the mission field. And I served for three years in Central America and worked with the church planting programs and evangelism programs. So things like vacation Bible schools and ministry outreach, things were in our
interacting with children and families all the time with that eternal perspective of reaching them with the message of Jesus. And so I knew I loved my students and I shared God’s love with them, but it was a whole different realm to be able to minister and share the saving grace of Jesus and being able to do that in the mission field. And it was kind of the eye-opener of like,
my profession or my career can look really different. Coming back to the States and marrying and I was in the world of education and ministry and loved all of that. Lots of different experiences brought me there. But after John passed away, it just kind of felt different. was like, I don’t know if I’m.
ready to go back to an administrative role that took a lot of time and knowing I needed to have a new balance with my family life and being the single parent. Education was something I loved, but just the time and all of that, I just didn’t know. And knowing again.
God’s faithfulness throughout my life, he would reveal and open the doors. I did some part-time teaching in that world, or in that season, and I just was kind of like, yep, this is a transition time, but not the end role for me. So once…
Tessa Martinson (37:27.759)
We had been on our inheritance of hope retreat that winter after John passed away, just continuing to stay in touch and volunteer a little, as I mentioned with the online groups. And it was.
in 2022, so that’s like four years after John had passed away. So kind of a transition of, you know, time and being able to heal and grieve and move forward. knew that there would be something else. I wasn’t quite sure what. And Jill, who was…
who became my supervisor and boss gave me a call. She had been one of the staff members on our retreat and shared that there was a new idea that was brewing, that there weren’t a lot of details in place yet, but would I be interested in applying for this position to bring regular in-person gatherings to life, this idea. I think I’m gonna cough here. Excuse me.
So she reached out and invited me to consider that. And so January of 2022, I joined the staff and started with this creative.
idea and how do we make it come to life. And again, it was where I think God brought all those experiences. There was a curriculum to write. There were people to train. There were volunteers that came on board. A lot of reaching out and connecting with volunteers, with families, with community partners in local churches. It just was like, all these little puzzle pieces that were experiences in and of their own in my life were all
Ellie Ledin (38:54.606)
you
Tessa Martinson (39:15.539)
connecting in a new way through Hope Hub. And so there have been a lot of ways that Hope Hub has served me and my family personally in the development of programming and then participating as a family as well. But in the whole world of inheritance of Hope, being able to be connected with other staff members and programs has really
I would say continues to be the good that comes out of the hard, but also the recognition that it is hard, that the grief is hard. And walking through that when your life is changing or when you see your children hurting. There have been so many ways to learn and grow and where processing my own grief is…
Definitely a personal journey, but to be able to share and relate and talk to others has been a great blessing in all of that too. And so I don’t think anyone ever follows the same journey and the way we process things that it is all so different. And that was a big piece too of the…
the joy that can be found when you are meeting together, when you do connect and build friendships through something like that. so, yeah, I think in how my grief might have prepared me, I don’t think some people think they would maybe talk about all of this for so long in their life or have it be such a prominent place and feeling now that it is.
something that does bring.
Tessa Martinson (41:05.986)
our family joy and connection. And it allows us to not just to be really open and process things in a healthy way as far as having conversations about emotions with my kids, about eternity, about how we live each day and being intentional, making the most of our opportunities. And just as a mom, I think too, thinking about how I was sharing with somebody
with this being National Legacy Month with inheritance of hope as for talking about that for May that Legacy can really be all the little things that we do faithfully with our family that in looking back over time have become the big things that our kids remember or that were meaningful and You know one of our routines is a bedtime blessing and so I just think about how that’s transformed over time That if it doesn’t happen now my kids are like come
Come and bless me, come and say my blessing. And so it’s like, our family blessings. And that was something we could add in our legacy song, that if we talk about that, they know what that means and what that looks like in our home routines. so, yeah, I think just being more aware of the things that.
Ellie Ledin (42:14.446)
you
Tessa Martinson (42:28.837)
that we do that in living our life create that legacy, but also the very intentional steps and simple routines or practices that we put in place have become really meaningful. And I think that’s something big that inheritance of hope has taught me as well. That John carried on and had a wonderful legacy of faith and love and serving others that we wanna honor and continue to develop. And we’re creating our family legacy too in these days.
and years that have followed his passing that yeah that we can continue to grow as well.
Ellie Ledin (43:07.15)
Yeah, and I bet I don’t want to speak for you, but I just would imagine being on staff or in inheritance of hope community in general has been a fairly healing experience. I know the culture at inheritance of hope is…
Tessa Martinson (43:20.465)
Mm-hmm.
Ellie Ledin (43:26.286)
crazy to me. Like I’ve worked elsewhere and then working here. I’m like, I didn’t know places like this existed. And at the time when I was starting on staff, I was going through a lot of grief and heaviness in a very different way from what you experienced. But I just remember hearing the culture at Inheritance of Hope and some of the things that are like, this is important and we are doing this.
And one of the things is like, we are people who run towards the people who are hurting. In a season when like people don’t know what to do or what to say, so they don’t do anything or they don’t say anything and they kind of like ostracize the people who are grieving. And in that season of grief for me, hearing that was so healing because I’m like, yes, I feel like where are my people? Like, you know, sometimes it has been isolating going through grief when you think that’s the time when you’re going to be most comforted.
Tessa Martinson (43:55.536)
Hmm.
Tessa Martinson (44:02.277)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (44:14.779)
Great.
Ellie Ledin (44:21.328)
So what are some things, you have a peek behind the curtain being on staff, what are things within the inheritance of hope community or culture that has been healing for you?
Tessa Martinson (44:38.363)
Yeah, I think I would agree with you. The running towards hurting people and that that’s really put into practice. I’ve never worked anywhere like this either and I’ve been in ministry and education and it’s just…
There’s so much grace for one another as staff members, but also just understanding that everyone’s journey is different, that everyone’s story is important, and being able to walk alongside and really kind of break down some of the barriers of like, I don’t know what to say, so I’m not gonna say anything. Sometimes it’s okay to just sit in the hurt together and not have words. It’s okay to not know what to say.
And I think that the healing.
part of the healing process has been the curiosity of others of what is your story? How are you building legacy? What are the special memories that your family holds dear? And to be able to talk about John and laugh about things or have people that remember his name. like at the beginning I said, when we get texts, they’d remember his birthday and the anniversary of
his death date and those sorts of things that I think remembering that our loved one is always a part of our life and who we are today and I think that has been really special and has reminded me in my ministry to others whether they’re in the inheritance of hope circle or being a part of a family served or people in my community or church how we remember others and their loved ones and their story.
Tessa Martinson (46:29.457)
means so much and is a way of caring for them and loving them, asking them about how life is going or special traditions that they’ve had and allowing them to share and talk. I think sometimes people that have lost a loved one or have had those hurts are afraid to share of the hurt or the loved one because it might make the listener or your friend feel awkward or not know what to say. But oh my goodness, if somebody asks about them, that’s just like
Ellie Ledin (46:52.718)
you
Tessa Martinson (46:59.637)
Well, let me tell you, or you know, it’s just a great invitation for them to know more. Excuse me. A great invitation for them to know more about your family and your story. And I find too, it’s harder now. I don’t know if it’s harder. Maybe that’s not the right way to say it.
But the more people we meet, the new people we meet that don’t know our story, I kind of am like, there’s a whole part of my life that you don’t know about. And so getting to know me or getting to know our family when they’re open to hearing more, that is definitely like a little healing piece of somebody cared enough to know more to the story and that sort of thing.
Yeah, Inheritance of Hope is a very unique…
culture and that and being able to involve the whole family. I think if it was something that just I was doing and finding that connection and healing would be great for me, but that my kids have found that as well. And even like our family and our friends as they’re hearing, there’s so many ways to be connected to inheritance folk, even if you’re not the family served. And being a part of some of our unique programs open to all that has been something others have been able to
Ellie Ledin (48:14.83)
you
Tessa Martinson (48:22.907)
to enjoy and find meaning from too. So yeah, it’s definitely a wonderful experience, which is like the weirdest thing to say when you’re talking about losing a parent or losing your spouse. And we always have said this too, but it’s like not the club you want to be a part of, but if you had to be a part of the club, the inheritance of hope community is a pretty good one.
Ellie Ledin (48:33.006)
you
Ellie Ledin (48:47.15)
Yeah, that’s a good way putting it. Oh my gosh. Well, I feel like we could talk forever. I feel like, I want to know more about your story with John. And it feels like any person who would meet you before or after John, which I am one of those people, it feels like, oh, wait, you don’t know me fully because something’s always going to be incomplete if you don’t know.
Tessa Martinson (48:51.355)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (49:01.819)
Hmm.
Tessa Martinson (49:16.443)
Sure.
Ellie Ledin (49:17.282)
you know, this whole missing piece of me right now. But we always ask this last question for all of our guests, and it’s whose legacy has impacted you, whether it’s in their life or death, like who’s been influential to you and you kind of still carry a part of them on with you?
Tessa Martinson (49:19.397)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (49:44.667)
When you were posing that questioner, I saw that as one of our topics. was like, that’s really hard to narrow it down. There are so many wonderful things. I am going, my parents, I would say my parents, I have lost my dad just a couple years before John, unexpectedly, but my parents just giving us that foundation of faith and service.
to others the way that they loved and cared for their neighbor, both their physical neighbors, their families or friends in need. My parents really did that, but those were the things that really drew me to John in my relationship with him. And I talk about his legacy and it has been faith and love and service. And the service he would help anybody, shovel snow.
rake leaves, repair the gutter that was falling off their house, whatever it would be. His love language were acts of service and so he showed his friends and his family how much he cared for them by doing those things and serving them. And so that’s a really beautiful way I feel to carry on his legacy and instill those gifts and qualities, continue to grow them in myself, but instill them in my children as well. And how do we love others?
How do we share God’s love with our neighbor or when we see a need do we?
not say anything because we might say the wrong thing or do we learn more and find out how we can help meet that need. And so I think watching John live that out where it didn’t matter if he was tired or he would get a call from somebody or someone would let him know like, hey, I’m going to go fix this screen door. You want to come? I mean, he was always joining in with other guys to to help others or be a part of something.
Ellie Ledin (51:33.006)
you
Tessa Martinson (51:39.913)
to make someone else’s life feel better, to take the worry off their shoulders. that was a real testimony to me too, that sometimes I might be tired or I might not know exactly how they respond or, you know, all the excuses that we tell ourselves. And when you just step out and serve, obviously you are receiving the blessing back as well as that person.
Ellie Ledin (51:56.781)
Mm-hmm.
Tessa Martinson (52:03.725)
And so, yeah, from my parents and John in looking at those lives that were lived and were given away to others, that’s something that I would really like to continue to grow in and do that alongside with my kiddos too. So, yeah.
Ellie Ledin (52:22.284)
Yeah, I feel like that everything you just shared is captured so well in your legacy song. I think, yeah, I’m just, I’m so excited because the listeners are going to hear it like right after this, you know, it’s going to be the way that your episode ends. And I’m just so glad because I feel like that’s such a good book. And to everything you shared, but especially just now with like the service, the caring for others, like that is a huge theme in that song. And obviously in your leg.
Tessa Martinson (52:28.513)
Yes, my goodness.
All fun.
Tessa Martinson (52:39.014)
Aw yeah.
Ellie Ledin (52:52.308)
and your kid’s life and how John lived his life like that’s amazing.
Tessa Martinson (52:57.349)
Yeah, that’s great to share it. I’ve been watching that song so many times. We all can hum it and sing the chorus and all the things. So yeah, that’s super special to us.
Ellie Ledin (53:11.278)
Well, Tessa, thank you for sharing a bit of your story. I know that your story cannot be fit into an hour time, but hearing the bullet point version even is really beautiful and has a lot of lessons that I think anyone listening will really benefit from. yeah, I was just kind of.
Tessa Martinson (53:16.42)
Yeah, thank you.
Tessa Martinson (53:21.061)
Mm-hmm.
Ellie Ledin (53:34.254)
nice to hear things peek behind the curtain because a lot of people listening to this might know of Inheritance of Hope or might not, but definitely maybe don’t have the insight that you do of the roles that you’ve played in Inheritance of Hope. And even plugging Hope Hubs, it definitely is a great service. out Tesla, they’re amazing.
Tessa Martinson (53:55.749)
Yeah.
Tessa Martinson (53:59.535)
Yeah, thank you, Ellie. It has been fun to share and be a part of this today.
