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The Whistler's Daughter

Defying My Prognosis One New Sport at a Time

When doctors told Kippy Hoene her body would only do less, she went looking for what it could still do — learning more than forty sports on mountains, oceans, rivers, cliffs, and in the open air.

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by Christine “Kippy” Hoene

Book cover of The Whistler's Daughter showing a woman wing-walking on a red biplane against a blue sky

About the Book

A story about strength that doesn't always look dramatic

After being diagnosed with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, Kippy faced doctors' warnings that her physical abilities would become increasingly limited. Rather than let that prediction define her, she became more determined to discover what she could still do.

This is not a simple story of overcoming adversity. It includes spectacular wins, awkward failures, painful losses, and unexpected friendships. Strength, Kippy learned, sometimes means starting over, asking for help, or simply refusing to surrender the parts of yourself that still feel alive.

“What she has is curiosity, persistence, and a willingness to be a beginner again and again.”

The Adventures

More than forty sports, one new beginning at a time

On mountains, oceans, rivers, cliffs, and in the air — learning to be a beginner again and again.

Rock ClimbingScuba DivingKite SurfingTrapezeAerial ArtsMountain Biking

About the Author

Christine
“Kippy” Hoene

Entrepreneur, author, adventurer, and lifelong believer in the courage of being a beginner.

Sports Learned: 40+; Sports Learned
Years Leading LifeSafe: 30+; Years Leading LifeSafe
Sons: 3; Sons

Over the years, Kippy has learned more than forty sports — rock climbing, scuba diving, kite surfing, trapeze, aerial arts, mountain biking — on mountains, oceans, rivers, cliffs, and in the air. She has never considered herself naturally athletic, fearless, or graceful. What she has is curiosity, persistence, and a willingness to be a beginner again and again.

For more than thirty years, she has also led LifeSafe Services, a national company focused on emergency preparedness and safety training — building a business while raising a family and navigating a progressive medical condition.

At the center of her life are her three sons, two daughters-in-law, and her partner, Marc — many of whom have joined her on the adventures woven throughout her story, sharing remote trails, ambitious plans, and the inevitable mishaps of saying yes before fully understanding what's involved.

Kippy wrote this book to share the humor, heartbreak, chaos, and surprising beauty of a life shaped by uncertainty and adventure — and to encourage readers to question the limits they've accepted and stay curious about what's still possible.