12th Annual Changemakers Event

The 2026 Changemakers Event will feature a panel of Iowa parents whose children have excelled in their chosen sports. Healthy Birth Day and Count the Kicks are rooted in Iowa, and we know big things are born here, including the families of our panelists. We're thrilled to have Teri and Doug Johnson, parents of Olympic Gold Medalist Shawn Johnson, and Courtney Chabot Dreyer, mom of Los Angeles Dodgers Pitcher Jack Dreyer. Moderator Eric Hansen of KCCI will explore what it is like to raise Changemakers and Champions in the Hawkeye State.

Teri and Doug Johnson were high school sweethearts who met at the local skating rink. They married at 17 and 18. They had Shawn, their only child, 15 years later. After a rough entrance into the world and a short NICU stay, Teri says Shawn decided "let's go" and has been a ball of fire ever since. 

Shawn was an incredibly active and physical child from the get go, and her parents worked to find activities to satisfy her drive. The Johnsons were driven to do whatever it took to raise a happy and independent girl.

Shawn continued to come back to gymnastics, quickly found her groove, and eventually joined team USA. After that, Teri says they were "along for the ride." Teri and Doug loved traveling around the world to watch Shawn compete, including when she won Gold in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Teri and Doug now live in Nashville, Tenn., and spend their time supporting Shawn, her husband Andrew East (a former NFL player), and their three grandkids. 

Courtney Chabot Dreyer is a wife and a mom of three boys, including her son Jack who is the Pitcher for the 2025 World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers. She started her career in Public Relations, and eventually worked in Corporate Communications for Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. (now Corteva Agriscience). After earning a law degree from Drake University, Courtney transitioned into the Pioneer Legal Department. Since 2023 Courtney has worked for Casey's General Stores as Assistant General Counsel. 

Beyond her professional career, Courtney is most proud of her roles as a wife to Steve for more than 30 years, and as a mother to three sons, each remarkable in their own right. "If there’s one lesson I’ve learned in raising a champion, it’s this: our job as parents is not to create the path, but to walk alongside our children as they find theirs—advocating when necessary, stepping back when appropriate and always anchoring them in who they are, not what they achieve." 

Dawn Stopplemoor is the mother of Zach Stopplemoor, an Olympic speed skater from Des Moines who is fresh off competing in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.  Dawn and her husband Tom spent years learning what it means to support a driven child. "Parenting an athlete taught me that my job was never to manage the outcome, but to learn when to cheer, when to stay quiet, when to trust him, and when to be there when he needed me. We didn't always get it right — but we kept showing up."