Get to Know Me
Hi there! I'm Hillary...
Welcome to Joyful + Rising!
It's an honor to have you here. My name is Hillary, and I'm a woman who wears many hats!
- Wife to my husband, Josh, of 7 years.
- Mom to our son, Liam, our daughter, Marsaili, and our fur babies
- Joy advocate: I always joke that my parents named me well. My first name means happy/joyful, and my maiden name means warrior. “Joyful Warrior.” So incredibly fitting, because I strive to choose joy in every aspect of life and help others do the same.
I call Georgia home as I have my entire life. I love being active and creative, and I love to serve others. Joyful + Rising initially began as a passion project for me, but in early 2022, it became an ordained, faith driven purpose.
In February of 2022, we discovered at my anatomy scan with our daughter that she had "multisystem abnormalities." We endured a high risk pregnancy and life threatening complications before welcoming our little warrior into the world. Not long after Marsaili was born, we were informed that she has a rare, terminal neurological condition known as Lissencephaly. Over the past year, we have endured more trials than we ever could have imagined, we have grieved the loss of things we had hoped for, we anticipate the grief that will come when this condition one day calls our daughter to her heavenly home...and through it all the call to find joy in the midst of our most uncertain circumstances is one we have embraced with gratitude and humility.
It is fascinating to see this brand and "passion project" evolve just as we are evolving. When this page initially launched, I made a commitment to receive the joy only the Lord could bring in spite of pain, circumstances, fear, self-doubt, and uncertainty. I made a commitment to share that here openly and honestly. Praise be to God for the way He has sustained us through these trials and demonstrated to us the ways in which His joy and peace do, indeed, surpass all understanding. We are grateful for the opportunity to be parents to two magnificent children. We are grateful to share this journey with you and have the opportunity to bring hope and help others feel seen, heard, and understood. Though this season is challenging, we see the goodness of God every single day. It comes with many moments of tears and suffering...but it comes with joys as well. Now more than ever, we see the way the light rises and the darkness cowers.
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"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." - John 1:5, ESV
"He uncovers the deeps out of darkness and brings deep darkness to light." - Job 12:22, ESV
"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you." Isaiah 60:1, ESV
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You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are gray
You'll never know dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away
- You are my Sunshine by Johnny Cash
We sing this song to both of our babies. Liam still asks us to sing it every now and then before he goes to sleep, and we sang it to Marsaili so often while she was in the NICU that the nurses often asked us to keep singing. It is one we will treasure for years to come as we raise these little bundles of sunshine.