Gwen Hepler has always found ways to stay connected — through teaching, volunteering, performing and the friendships she has built along the way.

That connection to others began early in Hepler’s life. After graduating from Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, she began her career teaching French at Westtown School, a Quaker coeducational boarding school outside Philadelphia. She later returned to the Carlisle area, where she taught English as a second language to Vietnamese refugees, ranging from young children to older adults.

“I was speaking Dick and Jane English all day — from the little kids to the high school kids to the adults — which I loved. I absolutely loved it,” she said.

While living in the Carlisle area, Hepler also met her future husband, Dan, during a pickup volleyball game, where, as she recalls, “he was impressed with my overhead smack.”

After they married, Hepler and Dan built a life together with Dan’s sons. In 1988, Dan’s job with PPG brought them to Mt. Lebanon, where Hepler continued teaching English as a second language at the Language Center in Pittsburgh, working primarily with international business professionals. The couple settled in Hoodridge Hilands, where they spent nearly three decades building friendships, memories and a community Hepler came to love.

Tennis became an important part of Hepler’s life in Mt. Lebanon. She and Dan played on the Cedar Boulevard tennis courts, where many of her longtime friendships began. She jokes that she was the better player at first — “until he started winning.”

Decades later, Hepler still plays tennis with many of the same people she met through the sport. Last month, she attended a party celebrating one of those friends, who turned 90 after recently stepping away from tennis.

“That’s what I’m hoping I can do — play for a good long time,” she said.

That desire to stay connected extended beyond the tennis court. When many of her international business students traveled to warmer climates during the winter, Hepler found herself with more free time. After a neighborhood cat caught one of the cardinals she had been watching in her backyard, she was devastated.

“We have to find you a job,” Dan told her.

The conversation led Hepler to Meals on Wheels, where she found another way to connect with her community through volunteer service. She still delivers two routes each week from Brookline, including one serving the Mt. Lebanon and Castle Shannon areas.

When Hepler and Dan moved to Providence Point in 2017, she found new opportunities to stay connected while continuing many of the friendships and activities that had been important to her in Mt. Lebanon. She remains active at Southminster Presbyterian Church, where she sings in the choir, plays handbells and serves as a deacon.

As director of the hand chimes group at Providence Point, Hepler wanted to give residents more opportunities to share their talents. After the group performed seasonal concerts but did not have a regular spring performance, she created Gwen Hepler’s Variety Show, a program where residents and staff sing, dance and showcase their talents. She also became involved with the Providence Point Players, continuing a lifelong love of performing.

“I’m a natural-born ham,” she said.

For Hepler, every chapter of life has presented new opportunities to learn, connect and bring people together — something she continues to do every day at Providence Point.