Jean Knarr

Aka: “Nonna”

Residence: Spring Township

A ball of energy with bright blue eyes and a head full of blond hair, 3-year-old Jack bolted through the back door of Jean Knarr’s Spring Township home and darted across the living room floor.  He bee-lined straight for the couch, where Knarr was sitting, and he wrapped himself in her arms.

“Nonna, Nonna,” he squealed, patting her lap to make sure he had her full attention. “Home run.” 

“Good job,” responded Knarr, who is her family’s biggest cheerleader.

She applauded his “home run,” which he hit while playing in the backyard with his grandfather. She gave him a big squeeze and kissed him on his forehead. Then came another hug, and another kiss, and one more hug before he laughed and wiggled away from her grasp. Knarr is an all-star grandmother who tends to shy away from the spotlight. But her family says she deserves a gold medal for always making them, and especially Jack, feel extra loved, even in ordinary, everyday moments. She can’t help it, she says. He’s her special MVP.

“Everything about him is so sweet,” Knarr says, as Jack beamed, delighted both by his achievement and his grandmother’s genuine attention. “He’s the best thing that ever happened to me. I love everything about him.”

Knarr, who recently celebrated her 35th wedding anniversary with her husband, worked as a data entry clerk in the Assessment Office at the Berks County Courthouse before becoming a full-time stay-at-home mom to her daughters Erin, 29, and Carrie, 25. “She is a great mom, the best mom ever,” says Erin, Jack’s mother. “She does everything for us.”

Knarr babysits Jack during most afternoons. Together, they like to watch Caillou, play sports, go to the swimming pool during the summer and visit the Reading Public Museum. Among their favorite activities, she says, is visiting the Berkshire Mall, throwing pennies in the fountain and eating a pretzel from Auntie Anne’s. They also enjoy taking vacations to Ocean City, Md., and walking along the boardwalk.

“Jack is an All-American boy,” Knarr says, jokingly admitting that he has her wrapped around his finger.  “He looks at me with those blue eyes, and I do, I just give in right away.” 

The best part about being a first-time grandparent, she says, is experiencing childhood again. Everything feels new, from noticing clouds in the sky to learning how to play catch. “He’s active and energetic. We like to be out and about,” she says. 

As the afternoon wound down, Jack grabbed the Snapfish memory book his mother had created as a present and climbed back into his Nonna’s lap. She smiled wide as he flipped through the pages and pointed to the family pictures. “I love when he’s here,” Knarr says softly, resting her cheek against the top of his head and giving him another hug. “When he’s not here, I miss him so much.”

Susan Hohl

Aka: “Nana”

Residence: Spring Township

On a hot and humid summer afternoon, Susan Hohl was sitting with her grandchildren in her Spring Township home, trying to figure out which brands and billboards to buy during a heated round of the new Monopoly Empire game.

“The 6-year-old won,” she says, laughing.
“I really don’t win a lot,” she adds. “I don’t pay enough attention to the game because I’m always focused on them. I’m just so happy to be around them, and I love seeing them having fun.” 

Turning ordinary moments into magical memories makes Hohl a winning grandparent, her family says. From riding the bumper boats at Ozzy’s to building robots out of empty cans, every minute spent with her four grandchildren  – Edgar, 8,  Zach, 6, Jacob, 6, and Abigail, 3 – makes her feel like she’s hit the jackpot. “I am so lucky,” she says. ”I’m happy to have a chance to be involved in their lives.”

Hohl grew up in the Prospect Park  part of Pennsylvania, until her parents relocated to Elverson when she was entering her senior year of high school. After graduating from Twin Valley High School, Hohl met her husband on a blind date, and the pair married at age 21. He worked as a vice president of human resources at various companies, and Hohl was a full-time stay at home mother until her three children entered middle school. She then worked various jobs, including as a regional manager for a fast food company. She also started a successful framing business, completing services for dozens of local companies, including Merrill Lynch and St. Joseph Medical Center.

Her husband became ill when Edgar was a baby, and she cared for them both. Then, Zach and Jacob were born five weeks apart, and she pitched in to help watch them, too. Her husband passed away a short time later, and she admittedly had a difficult time dealing with the heartbreak.

“We were married 35 years,” she says. “He was my best friend. I was devastated.”

It was her grandchildren who motivated her to keep living – and to keep smiling.

“[My grandchildren] made me get out of bed,” she says. “They made my life worth living. We have a bond. It’s like they allowed me to be excited about something again. They are my helpers, and I love their hugs. I realized life is much too short. So I’ll do the fun things with them first, and then the work second.”

Fun things, she says, include playing with and building train sets, making crafts and taking trips to the playground, GoggleWorks and Gring’s Mill. 

“We do the goofiest stuff because I don’t mind getting dirty,” says Hohl, who also enjoys creating art quilts, watching Hallmark movies and reading books on her Kindle in her down time. “They give me an opportunity to see the world through young eyes all over again. It’s takes a village to raise a child. I believe that the more people who help, the better.”

Diane & David Schaeffer

Aka: “Nana & pop-pop”

Residence: Exeter Township

On a slow summer evening, as the sun begins to set, Diane and David Schaeffer rest on their back patio. 

“If our grandchildren were here, it wouldn’t be so quiet,” Diane says, as both she and David chuckle at the thought of Abby, 7, and Adam, 12, galloping through their Exeter home. 

But the Schaeffers don’t mind the noise. 

In fact, they long for it most days, especially listening to Abby as she calls for their attention while playing dress up in her grandmother’s clothes or when she excitedly tells her grandfather to enjoy the fresh fruit smoothie she prepared in the kitchen, by herself, just for him. Or when they hear Adam, who has autism, talk vividly about Thomas the Train, car shows or computer games.

“I can’t imagine it any other way,” says Diane, a retired administrative assistant.

“I feel lucky to be so close to them and to be so involved,” adds David, a production planner.

The Schaeffers were thrilled to join “The Grandparents Club,” as they call it. They spoiled Adam and often pitched in to help his parents. But they became even closer when Adam was diagnosed with autism at age 3. 

The grandparents immediately rallied to learn as much as possible about autism and to support him. Almost a decade later, the Schaeffers still continually research autism, ask questions, attend seminars and visit monthly support meetings. 

“We didn’t know what to do or what to expect,” Diane says, adding that the Berks County Autism Society was a helpful resource. Her daughter-in-law Lucy, who is Adam’s mother, also started the Unending Promise Foundation, a non-profit charity based in Shillington. 

The Schaeffers, full of love and patience, unknowingly stepped up even more after one Saturday night when Lucy and Scott had to work late. They volunteered to watch the kids as they often do, but on this night, Adam latched onto the idea of staying at his grandparents’ house. The sleepover routine became vital for him, and he now stays with the Schaeffers almost every Saturday night and attends church with them on Sunday morning. It’s always felt like blessing, not a burden, they say.

The couple is sure to carve out moments with both grandchildren. For example, Diane and Abby love to shop, craft, play in the kitchen and host tea parties, Downton Abbey-style. Dave and Adam love to hike, kayak, visit train shows and car shows and explore outdoor areas like French Creek.

“They are so thoughtful and considerate of our kids and make every effort to help both Adam and Abby feel loved, secure and special,” Lucy says. “It's not just the places they go or the things they do; it's the way they treat our kids that reminds all of us that we are truly blessed.”