Building hope in community 

Bethany Joy Clark is following her dreams and building community around fertility.  

Bethany Joy is a dreamer and doer. She also knows a thing or two about magic, having spent a decade in her early career working for Walt Disney Company in global sales and marketing. 

After twenty years building connections for high-profile brands, Bethany Joy recognized that the time to build her very own community, her own dream, is now. 

“At the end of the day, that’s what makes life meaningful—lifting each other up, helping one another. Celebrating others’ stories and wins. That’s why I’ve always loved working in community. The most special memories I have working in community for huge brands and well-known startups are watching the community team uplift others. That’s where magic happens, in community.”

Magic has everything to do with where Bethany Joy is today. Magic as in her ability to receive challenging news, and transform that into something else entirely: Opportunity. For herself, and countless others. 

“After working in corporate America for two decades, I got let go in a large tech layoff. I had a lot of emotions because it was really unexpected. More than a hundred people got let go. It was really shocking and jarring to all of us. But I decided that as a single mom and the main caregiver for my family and my daughter, I wanted to invest in myself and take a big chance. I thought it’s now or never, I just need to take a leap of faith.”

Bethany Joy absolutely considered jumping on LinkedIn to find another job. But she kept feeling a tug in her heart. And decided to follow it. 

“I’ve had such a wonderful career that I can help these awesome companies do amazing things. What if I put all that same energy and focus and passion into myself, into my dream? I’m so proud of myself in this season for doing the thing that I’ve been scared to do. There’s so much power and excitement in just going for it.” 

The dream before the dream    

Pursuing her own business is not the first dream Bethany Joy has fought for. Her daughter, now six years old, was the first dream that inspired Bethany Joy to put everything on the line. 

“I worked so incredibly hard, I went through many rounds of IVF to get my little miracle and so in my free time, I make sure that I’m a really present mom. I want to have no regrets.”

Bethany Joy’s fertility struggle connects her to so many other families. Yet when she started her journey, and her first round of IVF, she was largely navigating her experience alone. Which is the inspiration behind Bethany Joy’s new venture, her dream business, Hope Here. 

“The first time I went through IVF, I didn’t tell anybody. I tried to be superwoman and help my team and be with my friends and do all the things I would normally do. I remember my acupuncturist said, ‘You’re never going to be able to get pregnant if your body feels like lions are chasing you.’ At that moment I realized I can’t keep going at the pace and the speed in my career that I want to, I need to slow down.”

When Bethany Joy found out her first round of IVF had failed, her career was soaring. She was anticipating an offer for a promotion, and heartbreakingly, anticipating turning down the opportunity. She did. And her honesty and vulnerability with her boss in that moment was part of what made her next (successful!) IVF journey possible. 

“She offered me the promotion and I looked at her and said, “What if I say no?” It was silent for what felt like eternity. She sat back in her chair, then looked at me and said, ‘What’s going on?’ Tears ran down my face as I told her everything—that I just failed IVF, and was told I might not be able to have children. She looked at me and said, ‘One of my best friends just went through a really hard fertility battle and I know a lot about that. We’re with you. We’re supporting you, whatever you need, and let’s revisit this next year.’ It was everything I needed to hear. That employer was so incredibly kind and gracious and supportive. They let me fly to Colorado for fertility treatments. They let me work remotely.” 

More inspiration for Hope Here, though Bethany Joy didn’t necessarily recognize it as inspiration at the time, was the unexpected community and support she continued to find along the way throughout her fertility journey.  

“As I began to share my story more in the workplace, I had more and more people come up to me and say, ‘Hey, can I talk to you about that?’ There are so many people going through their day-to-day in business that are hurting, that are struggling, or watching their significant other struggle.” 

Community also had a way of finding and wrapping around Bethany Joy outside of the workplace, during some of her lowest, most personal moments.  

“I remember just crying, just sitting on the table waiting for [an] exam. The ultrasound tech walked in and I was already in tears and I just remember thinking, ‘You can’t help me.’ I felt so hopeless, so sad and distraught. That ultrasound tech and I are still friends to this day. She is on my [Hope Here] website, and I talked with her last week. Being vulnerable and authentic in my journey that second time, just raising my hand and saying I need help was game-changing.”

Creating space for more dreams 

Bethany Joy’s daughter is a major source of inspiration too. She is one reason Bethany Joy is choosing to work for herself instead of diving back into the grind of corporate America.  

“I can be there for the class field trip. Volunteer in the classroom when I want to be there for my daughter. I’ve talked to a lot of women in business over the years. I’ve been so fortunate to be in executive boardrooms with incredibly powerful women that run major corporations and learn from them and glean from them. Time is so short, and this time when she’s little is so precious—I don’t want to miss it.”

Bethany Joy’s ultimate goal in founding Hope Here is that nobody has to navigate their fertility journey alone. She offers one-on-one coaching, and most of all, hopes to support women who are working and having to remain somewhat professional during what can be a very difficult, emotional process. 

“I’m trying to build a business that’s everything I wish somebody would have pointed me toward when I was in my early thirties. My passion is for women in business, especially, who are moving through their careers and achieving their dreams, but behind the scenes, might be sad or struggling with their dream of having a baby. Hope Here was formed to give hope. You can come to the website to read stories of hope, or find resources like supplements and clean beauty products to help you in the journey. It’s the little things in life that bring hope and inspiration.”

In her newfound free time, Bethany Joy nurtures her bond with her daughter, taking every opportunity to enjoy and celebrate her.  

“In my free time I chase my six-year-old miracle. We do a lot of fun things that six-year-olds love to do—we’ve been learning to surf, learning to ride a bike. She loves all things Barbie, so lots of pink. She starts kindergarten in the fall.”  

There’s nothing quite like building your own dream, knowing it will ripple out to create and hold space for others’ dreams too. Including her daughter’s dreams. To those, Bethany Joy is fully devoted. 

“One reason I’m taking this huge leap of faith in starting my own business is that it will allow me a special time with my child that I might not otherwise have or be granted if I worked for a different employer. I’m really grateful for this opportunity and I plan to make the most of it.”

If you have a fertility story to share, or are in need of fertility coaching and support, visit Hope Here to connect with Bethany Joy and/or submit your story.