meet amanda hvass

Amanda Hvass is a mother, leader and friend. Learning from first hand experience about raising and advocating for a Deaf child with special needs, she has a passion to support her local community. She spends time advocating for families in the school and looking for ways to support the district- working to bridge the gap between the public and the school system. Through her certification from Allenbaugh Associates she loves to offer support on team development, reaching the “bottom line”, and working effectively together. 

She has also worked for many years in the non-profit sector- leading an Oregon team in the pursuit of helping families that have Deaf and hard of hearing children. In this role, she’s had the pleasure of working with people through joy and hardship, as well as managing a team through the easy and the challenging times. 

As a native Oregonian with a passion for people and playing outside, Amanda enjoys running, Rena (a H.I.I.T. class), wine, and friends. She and her husband have three boys and a blue-heeler cattle dog.


why?

A note from Amanda:

I’ve tried to pinpoint WHY I love the work I do and have come to the conclusion that so much goes into this passion of mine.

As I look around the various communities I’m in (and there are many!), I continue to desire more. More joy, more apprecition for one another, more accomplishment, education… you name it. I’ve been accused of being overly passionate or overly serious. I’m not the best at small talk or light-hearted subjects. I am the worst sports fan- the actual worst. But I am really good at seeing people as valuable and incredible creatures. I LOVE people a lot. I love seeing people work together to create good and beautiful things.

  • I’ve been through hell and back as an advocate for my son in the educational system. I’ve been through hell and back in the medical system for my son as well. I’ve been through hell and back in my professional life- wow- now that I’m thinking about it, that’s a lot of hell and backs. In these times, I’ve witnessed goodness that appears to come from a loving God. The goodness is so rich and saturated it appears to be heavenly. How else can one explain people serving one another with humility? How do I explain the one doctor that gave me ten minutes in her busy schedule and ended up saving my sons life? How could I explain the friendships I have, that though we hurt one another, we come back to the table to continue to work it out? The goodness and love I see appear to be far deeper than humanly possible- it’s almost like magic.

    I’ve also seen darkness and a despair that wrings you out- threatens to take your breath away. These places are scary. They’re confusing. They can make me feel so sad I don’t know which way is up, or so rageful I can only see red. I remember a time when my sons special ed class wasn’t properly staffed and the other parents and myself had taken exhausting measures to prove to the school district that the class needed more help- only to have the administration deny our request and reality. My frustration felt almost animalistic. I remember scream-crying in my car, feeling hopeless.

    And yet…. in those dark places, as crazy as they look, I can attest to the fact that choosing GOOD and LOVE in all things, brings about GOOD and LOVE in all things. I found resolution with my school district and became better friends with the staff and admin while doing this. The classroom became better staffed- safety was no longer an issue. Where we once experienced barriers for special needs children in the medical field, we’ve seen many fade away, making room for other children to thrive in.

    I certainly find myself in places of discouragement. But it never has the final say. I absolutely love working with people to find solutions to what feels like unmanageable problems. I think that many times we can be a help to one another, if we can see the value in one another. Also, many times it takes one person to “go first”- to love first, forgive first, be brave first…

    I find people fascinating. Whether you use Myer Briggs, Enneagram, LOGB, the Shapes Test, or something entirely different, it is clear that we are all so unique. We have different communication styles, hot buttons, and motivators (just to name a few). The more I learn about the people around me, as well as myself, the more I want to dig deeper to find what we’re capable of together. No man is an island and we know through science that we actually need one another. The human heart can actually die of heart ache. Babies necessitate touch to sustain their life. If we need one another, then why not figure out the best way to work with one another?

    This is why I do what I do- why I love what I do. If we need one another, and we’re all by the grace of God, here today…. then why not see the potential at it’s fullest? I believe that when we do work to that potential, we see businesses flourish, schools produce joyful and educated children, medical fields being innovative as well as their patients feeling taken care of… in an nutshell?

    People feel valued and cared for- and they can then value and care for others. It’s like magic. (Very intentional, gritty, hard-earned magic!)