Hession’s wife, Janie, is genetic multitasker
When Janie Michele McFaul was a sophomore at Gonzaga University, she traveled with her boyfriend, Dennis Hession, to Park City, Utah, for a winter vacation with his family. Dennis was an excellent skier. Janie was not. At the top of the mountain, Dennis realized Janie was frozen with fear. He enclosed her with a hug and gently skied her down the mountain.
Janie returned from the vacation sure this was her forever man. She was right. The two psychology majors married on May 15, 1972 – the day after they graduated from GU.
“We had no money, no jobs, no career paths to hop onto,” Janie said. “But we made our way into adulthood together.”
Together is this couple’s watchword. Dennis Hession was officially named Spokane’s mayor on Monday. You’ll be seeing a lot of him now. Janie, too. They do almost everything together, even though Janie – academic adviser and assessment evaluator at GU’s School of Business Administration – has a full-time career.
I’ve known Janie for almost 20 years. We met through our mutual friends, Sue and Gary Bloom. We friends of the Hessions still wonder: How do they stay so skinny and when do they sleep?
I met up with Janie recently at her office in GU’s Jepson Center. She works there Monday through Friday. She advises 250 students and in this task, she taps into her mom skills – the four Hession children range in age from 19 to 27.
She also uses the guidance-and-counseling master’s degree she earned at GU in the mid-1970s as Dennis pursued his law degree. Back then Janie rarely got the amount of sleep she does now – about six hours.
Janie’s energy is part of her inheritance. She is the oldest of 10 children. Yup, 10. That was big – even by 1950s Catholic family standards. The family moved to Pullman when Janie was 7. Her now-deceased father, Gerry McFaul, was a high school coach and teacher known for his integrity. He never once had a technical foul called on him during his coaching career.
Janie’s mom, Marjorie, now 80, grew up in Spokane. She earned her degree from Sacred Heart’s nursing school but took a career break until her youngest was in kindergarten. She played the violin in WSU’s orchestra, and she organized children’s concerts featuring her musical brood combined with kids from the McCartan clan – another large, Irish Catholic family.
Plus, Marjorie sewed all her children’s clothes. So you see why Janie irons her husband’s shirts each Sunday and actually enjoys it. She’s a genetic multitasker.
The skinny factor? Janie loves cooking – her Thanksgiving Day feasts are legendary – but she was blessed with the metabolism of a hummingbird. She runs four to five times a week, but not often with her husband, because this is her rare alone time.
As Janie and I chatted, her cell phone rang. Dennis. They talk about 10 times a day.
Janie got a preview of community-event obligations during Dennis’ stint as City Council president. They average four to six community events a week. Conversation is no problem for Janie. She’s outgoing, well-read, and she’s been an adviser to many of GU’s basketball players. Zag talk is an excellent ice-breaker.
The challenge? What to wear.
“My sister Sally works at Nordstrom. Shortly after Dennis was elected City Council president, (Sally) put me in a dressing room and threw clothes at me. I came out of that day very versatile. Everything’s interchangeable.”
She and Dennis feel ready to step into this very public life. They are both 55; their kids are grown. They see this new stage as a continuation of a public-service philosophy instilled in them at GU and honed through decades of volunteer work.
“Being part of a large family, I knew we were all there together to help each other,” Janie said. “Nobody was more important than anybody else.”
After that ski date 35 years ago, Janie – no fan of heights or speed – gave up the sport. She found plenty to replace it. You’ll soon see for yourself.