Morning Star: Amy Eddings Returns To The Airwaves

Amy Eddings had every intention of simplifying her life when she left New York City and her WNYC radio job hosting NPR’s All Things Considered in 2015. The universe had other ideas, even after she and her husband relocated to rural Ada, Ohio. In March, the Brunswick native returned to the airwaves as the host of 90.3 WCPN ideastream’s Morning Edition. 

Change of Pace » After moving to Ada, Eddings did “a little bit of this, a little bit of that,” including working as a staffer at The Lima News. She and her husband, Mark Hilan, also bought and renovated a 1900-built Victorian home in the Hardin County town and now operate it as the Easter House Bed & Breakfast. “That’s what’s great about Ohio — and that’s what’s great about rural Ohio — is that you really can reinvent yourself,” she says. 

HGTV-Ready » Working in phases, the makeover included gutting the kitchen and rehabbing with new appliances, an island and additional cabinets; creating an apartment over the detached garage and adding a private bathroom for B&B guests. The couple also finished the attic for themselves. “We have a place to retreat to when we have guests,” she says. 

Forever Friends » After nearly 30 years in New York, Eddings admits that Ada has been a little lonely. “I thought that you can make friends anywhere, and you can,” says the 53-year-old. “But it’s not always an easy process. I didn’t realize how valuable those people and those relationships were to me [in New York], and how irreplaceable they are.” 

Boomerang Back » Eddings shortens her commute during the week by living in the basement of her parents’ home in Avon. “I’m a member of the boomerang generation. What can I tell you?” she laughs. Despite a literal bump or two (she backed over a neighbor’s $500 mailbox while borrowing her dad’s car), she is thankful for her parents’ generosity. “It’s been great getting to know my parents in a whole different way.”

My Town » In Brunswick, Eddings grew up as one of six kids and was destined for big things. “I was a city dweller at heart, a little urbanista in the making,” she recalls. 

Babe in the City » At 16, she used a fake ID for the first time to see Michael Stanley Band at the Agora Ballroom with two of her best friends. Unfortunately, the ID fell out of her pocket at the worst possible time. “I didn’t notice it until I was flushing the toilet,” she says. “You’re in that moment where you’re watching your face on the license on the fake ID swirling around and vanishing down the toilet.”

Telling Stories » Eddings has always been drawn to public radio’s storytelling. Recently, she examined Ohio’s opioid epidemic through the lens of two outreach workers with Cleveland’s syringe exchange program. It opened her eyes to “how badly Ohio has been hit,” she says. “It’s a public health crisis.”

Night Moves » Eddings has discovered morning radio can be difficult. “This schedule runs counter to the way the rest of the world works,” Eddings says. But she’s found a silver lining: 3 a.m. workouts. “I belong to Anytime Fitness,” she says. “I figured I might as well take them up on that.”