Turtle Wing Celebrates 15 Years of Helping Kids

Some may think a turtle with wings is unusual, but for the Hoopers, it’s a continuous gift from God and their son Jack, which they have proudly shared with others for 15 years, a celebration made even more special this April, Autism Awareness Month.

“The name Turtle Wing comes from Jack’s love of turtles and Wing for Heaven (because I know he is with the angels),” said DeeAnn Hooper, founder of Turtle Wing.

“And then a year after Turtle Wing began, in 2012, Jack’s second-grade teacher, Pam Vrazel, found an old paper he had written years earlier that I had never seen. It read: “A turtle wings. I call it a turtle bird and it fly and it swims and it likes me and it likes to play a Nintendo DS and it likes to eat bugs.”

This rediscovered note changed everything for the Hoopers and reinforced the meaning and importance of Turtle Wing.

The Turtle Wing Foundation is a non-profit organization based out of Schulenburg that helps individuals with learning challenges in rural areas achieve their full potential by providing access to a shared network of emotional, educational, and therapeutic resources.

The Hoopers’ story about their sons, Jack and Will, is one filled with what the foundation is built on: faith, hope, and most importantly, love. This is what DeeAnn shared at this year’s Turtle Wing Toast.

“After college and a few years in the city, my husband Chris and I felt called back home. We started our family here. Jack was born in May of 2001, and Will followed 16 months later. Like many young parents, we were juggling full-time jobs, diapers, and exhaustion, but also joy. As the boys grew, we began to notice differences. Jack was brilliant, anxious, and rigid in his routines. Will had a severe speech delay but was always smiling. What started as a quiet concern turned into a long and difficult search for answers. In the fall of 2007 (Jack was six and Will was four), both boys were finally diagnosed with high-functioning autism.

Jack was nine years old, thriving in school, playing baseball, full of life. After a few days of fever, we rushed him to the ER. Jack looked at me and told me he was going to die. I told him he wouldn’t. But Jack’s body shut down. Before the helicopter arrived, Jack went into cardiac arrest and died right in front of me.

When planning Jack’s funeral, we were asked where memorial donations should go. There was no local autism organization, so with the help of dear friends, Loueva and Erin, we found one in Austin. That moment planted another seed: What if our community had something of its own? People warned us how hard it would be. They weren’t wrong. But we listened to God. We prayed. And eventually, Turtle Wing was born.”

What began as a board of DeeAnn’s friends volunteering their time around her kitchen table has now become a well-known and meaningful organization. “We’ve grown to a board of 10, one full-time employee, and three part-time staff. We started with one provider (Hatch Learning), and now have 15+ providers that are performing critical services ranging from speech therapy to tutoring to inclusive dance classes. All for those with learning challenges in Fayette, Lavaca, and Colorado counties,” said Hooper. “I want to mention the importance of our providers. If it weren’t for them, Turtle Wing would not be here. They are the boots on the ground, performing these critical services for the families in our area.”

Executive Director Destiny Siptak can attest to the importance the organization has had within the communities. “We have a saying at the foundation that I love: we are cultivating a community of hope. Not only are we creating access to services within a rural community, we are serving as a central hub for both families and providers alike. Making the services more easily available and helping families who have children with learning challenges thrive,” said Siptak, who knew she was a part of something truly making a difference after only a couple of months on the job, when the organization received a powerful letter.

“It was from a family that we funded therapy for. They expressed their gratitude and explained that without our assistance, they would not have been able to receive the services their child needed. He went from a struggling sevenyear- old requiring both speech and occupational therapy, to graduating from his services and even playing a piano recital at church. This was God’s reminder that not only am I in the right place, but Turtle Wing is changing lives. There have been hundreds of stories like this since, all another reminder of Turtle Wing’s impact.”

And those stories are started and also shared at several family-focused events Turtle Wing has throughout the year, like Jack Hooper Day at the Ballpark and Homerun Derby, Turtle S’Wing, and Monster Dash Along with those events, Turtle Wing‘s 15-year celebration has only just begun. “We are lucky enough to have an office in a beautiful gallery in Schulenburg. So, we wanted to showcase the last 15 years of Turtle Wing with artwork done by Turtle Wing members, as well as a selfguided walk-through timeline of the major milestones and growth of the foundation. We are hosting an opening on Saturday, May 16, while simultaneously celebrating what would have been Jack’s 25th birthday on May 15,” said Hooper.

Many people choose to question God’s path for their life, but not the Hoopers, who choose to turn it into a purposeful gift that is steady like a turtle and will continue to fly.