Staff photo / R. Michael Semple Noelle Venerose of Hubbard, is in the running for the title of “Super Mom” through a contest sponsored by NewBeauty Magazine. In the photo with her is her youngest son, Gideon, who turns 2 next month.

HUBBARD — Noelle Venerose collects vintage “Wonder Woman” dolls and has a few Barbie dolls, including one who is disabled and makes her feel like she can do anything.

She said she collects the dolls to remind herself who she is, how far she’s come and that her condition doesn’t limit her.

Venerose, 34, shared her story recently and this will be the first time many people in her life will learn the depths of her medical condition.

“It was always a hush hush thing,” she said, but explained that over time, she realized she could use her voice to help others.

She is in the running for the title of “Super Mom” through a contest sponsored by NewBeauty Magazine. Former model Heidi Klum is ambassador for the contest, which supports Children’s Miracle Network.

The winner, who will be featured in the magazine, will walk away with $20,000 and a dream family vacation. Venerose said she would like to take her husband and sons to Walt Disney World if she wins.

She said she joined the contest because she wants to help others who are suffering with Crohn’s disease.

She was diagnosed at 12 with the debilitating, inflammatory bowel disease that has resulted in four surgeries for her, as well as an ostomy bag. The medical device is a pouch that collects waste from the body through a stoma, an opening created during surgery that connects to the bowel.

“She felt that it was time to let people know,” her husband, David, said.

Venerose said she joined the contest so she could be a voice for the disabled and “because I know it’s hard and because I know people can be cruel.”

She said treatment she received as a kid left her with “chipmunk cheeks,” for a time, opening her up to bullying.

She was sickly as a kid, short and underweight. At the height of her illness, before the ostomy, she said her weight fell to 99 pounds, she was going to the bathroom up to 50 times a day and she was in constant pain.

She’s 5-foot-8, so that’s a pretty big deal, she said, adding that in her early 20s, her weight fell to 72 pounds for a time.

Because her body has been deprived of nutrients, Venerose, who grew up in Akron, developed osteoporosis. She said she was resigned to the fact she wouldn’t have a family.

“I thought I was just going to be a dog mom,” she said.

Venerose, who is an independent consultant for Paparazzi Jewelry, did some modeling in her early 20s and at one time attended the Minnesota-based Le Cordon Bleu, a network of French culinary schools, though she did not finish her degree.

She and her husband, who is 55, said they “got hell” for their age difference when they started dating.

The two met in 2019 on Facebook and had mutual friends. He said he messaged her, they began talking and he eventually invited her to meet for coffee, but she kept cancelling.

“Long story short, I was afraid to tell him about my ostomy,” she said.

Little did she know that he was unfazed by her disability because his father had an ostomy.

“It doesn’t define you as a person,” he said.

Venerose was told she’d probably never have children and said her dream was to be a mom.

While it’s possible to carry out a healthy pregnancy with an ostomy, Venerose said she’s been told she’s the only documented case of a woman who’s had three, healthy, back-to-back deliveries with the device.

Her son, David, will turn 5 on Wednesday, Josef will be 4 on Christmas Eve and Gideon will turn 2 in June.

Her husband grew up locally, graduated from Struthers High School in 1988, and worked at local news stations in his early days. He is also an entertainer, having shared the stage with the likes of Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra.

The piano in their living room has photos and autographs of several celebrities with whom he’s worked. These days, he said he helps her with the kids and doesn’t perform as much as he did in the past.

The two were married Oct. 16, 2021, at Our Lady of Mount Carmel when David was a newborn.

“He changed our lives,” his dad said. “It was a miracle.”

They bought a house and she got pregnant with Josef, adding that Gideon was “a total surprise.”

Although she is on birth control now, Venerose said she’s not ruling out having another child.

Dressed in a pink tutu and sparkling jewelry for the interview, Venerose said she wakes around 3 a.m. most days to start her chores, do her makeup and prepare for the day.

She said the early mornings don’t bother her as she got used to getting up every two hours to feed the boys when they were babies, and because it gives her time to prepare for the day and enjoy a cup of coffee.

Dressing up every day gives her purpose, she said, adding “I’m rocking it … I’m doing the best I can.”

To vote, visit thesupermom.org/2026/noelle-venerose. One free vote can be cast every 24 hours and additional votes can be purchased to support the nonprofit’s mission. A winner will be announced on or around July 17.