When Ben Northenor moved to Los Angeles from Indiana at just 19, he was chasing the Hollywood dream of being an actor. Sharing an apartment with a group of bandmates, acting by day, and soaking up everything L.A. had to offer, he never imagined that his true leading lady would walk right through his front door.
“I met Hannah when she came over with a friend who was dating one of my roommates,” Ben says. “We became friends, stayed in touch while she went off to college, and when she came back, one of my buddies told me, ‘If you don’t marry that girl, you’re an idiot.’ He was right.”
Ben admits he thought Hannah was beautiful, but it was her sense of humor that sealed the deal.
“She is the absolute funniest person I have ever met in my life. Her heart is also massively big. She’s just a wonderful person all around,” he says.
Hannah, a photography teacher and Westside native, remembers the moment she first saw Ben.
“He was outside throwing a frisbee with his friends. He was so cute,” she says, laughing. “I made sure to hang out with my friend a lot just so I could see him more. I even photographed the band he lived with just to be around him.”
But the more she got to know Ben, she realized it was his optimistic worldview that made her think she wanted a family with him.
“He’s a dreamer and he’s so positive. He sees the best in every single situation, and I am much more of a realist/pessimist. I think that I needed that light in my life. So he’s always been that person to say, ‘Shift your mindset, look at the beautiful stuff.’ And I am so in love with that way of moving through the world. It’s infectious and it hasn’t stopped. I think that we make each other better,” she gushes.
The couple married in 2009 in scenic Los Olivos. The wedding theme was, “A little bit country, a little bit rock ‘n’ roll,” due to the fact that Hannah is the granddaughter of Alan Freed, the man who coined the term, “rock ‘n’ roll!” It’s also Ben’s nickname for Hannah, while she calls him “Country.” The perfect combination.
Rock ‘N’ Roll and Country now have two kids, Grace (8) and Wylie (12). Together, they have built a life in Westchester that’s just as uplifting as their positive point of view.
A House With a Guardian Angel
The family’s journey to Westchester began during Hannah’s first pregnancy. Living in a Culver City condo with no designated parking, they started dreaming of a real neighborhood–one with driveways, backyards and space to grow.
“We didn’t have much money, but we walked through Westchester one day and just felt it,” Ben says. “We knew this is where we wanted to raise our family.”
That hope became reality through a twist of fate and a little help from a contractor friend. He connected them to a house in probate, owned by a retired American Airlines pilot named John Wise.
“We reached out to his family in Pittsburgh, shared our story, and they agreed to sell it to us–furniture and all,” says Ben.
They’ve even kept John Wise’s spirit alive in their home, hoping he’ll watch out for the kids.
“His retirement certificate hangs in our hallway,” says Hannah. “We feel like he looked out for us. And weirdly enough, Wylie became obsessed with airplanes as a toddler.”
Creative Careers
Though no longer acting, Ben has built a successful career behind the scenes in television, working as an editor on shows like the reboot of Dynasty, Black-ish, Mayor of Kingstown, and Fubar. Though industry strikes and shifts have been a challenge, he recently landed a new editing gig.
“I just started on a new show. I can’t say what it is yet–NDA and all–but I’m really excited to be back,” he says.
Hannah, meanwhile, has been teaching visual and media arts at Windward School, her own alma mater, for the past two decades.
“We still have a darkroom, and I teach everything from analog photography to Photoshop to AI image creation,” she says. “It’s pretty amazing to still be fostering creativity in the same place where I once was a student.”
The Joy of Play
Wylie, who attends WISH Middle School, and Grace, who’s at WISH Elementary, are thriving in school.
“I love learning, and it’s a big school so I have a lot of friends,” says Grace.
The kids are just as busy outside of the classroom. When Wylie’s not traveling with Garciaparra Baseball Group, he plays with Del Rey American Little League–where he first fell in love with the sport at age four. A lefty pitcher who also plays first base, his favorite Dodger is Mookie Betts. Wylie hopes to be a professional ballplayer one day.
Grace takes gymnastics and rides horses in Palos Verdes.
“I’ve loved horses since I was three,” she says. “I love being around them and cantering. And I can make horse sounds, too!”
Grace adorably presses her lips together and engages in a perfect horse whinny, shaking her own blonde mane. It’s impressive. She even hopes that someday Westchester will permit horses because she has designs on owning a miniature horse, saying, “I just want to cuddle it!”
Their spring break recently included an impromptu, but epic, water balloon fight. Feeling bored, Grace and Wylie had gone to Little Vons for popsicles, but came back with as many balloons as they could carry.
“We filled up 280 water balloons and went for it–three rounds, it was a brawl,” Wylie says.
While most kids would leave a big mess of busted balloons in the aftermath, not so for Grace and Wylie.
“We cleaned them all up after. We’re responsible water balloon fighters,” says Grace.
Why Westchester feels like home
For the Northenors, Westchester is more than a location, it’s a community.
“It feels like Mayberry,” Hannah says. “Everyone knows each other. We have neighbors who check on the kids when they’re out riding bikes, who text me if Wylie ends up at their house. There are at least 20 people we could call in a pinch if we needed help lifting something heavy.”
It’s that sense of connection and safety that means the most to Hannah and Ben.
“Even on difficult mornings, we know this home is our nest. This is our safe space,” Hannah says. “And the community radiates that same love and support.”
Looking ahead, the couple hopes to keep nurturing their little corner of Westchester, whether it’s through school, sports, or simply spending time together.
“We make each other better,” Hannah says, smiling at Ben. “And that’s the best kind of love.”
Story by Shanee Edwards. Photos by Zsuzsi Steiner.