Beverly Vance

Beverly Aikins
Aikins (left) with son, JD (right) at the White House in 2025
Born
Beverly Carol Vance

1960 (age 65)
Middletown, Ohio, U.S.
Other names
  • Beverly Hamel
  • Beverly Lewis
  • Beverly Bowman
OccupationRegistered nurse
Known forMother of Vice President JD Vance
Political party
Independent
Spouses
  • First name unknown Lewis
    ​
    ​
    (divorced)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1983; div. 1985)​
  • Robert Hamel
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1988; div. 1995)​
  • Ken Last name unknown
    ​
    ​
    (m. 2000, divorced)​
  • First name unknown Aikins
    ​
    ​
    (div. 2014)​
Children2, including JD
Relatives Vance family

Beverly Carol Vance Aikins (born 1960)[1][2] is an American registered nurse who is the mother of the 50th vice president of the United States, JD Vance.[3][4] While well known by her Vance maiden name, she now goes by the name Beverly Aikins.[5]

Aikins has married and divorced five times. Through her marriages she had two children, Lindsay, and JD Vance, who would serve as a United States senator from Ohio from 2023 to 2025 and later as vice president of the United States.[6] Aikins struggled with addiction and lost custody of her children after allegedly attempting to crash a car and kill her son. She said that the incident is what caused her to want to change. She became clean in 2015 and has been drug and alcohol-free for over ten years.[7] She celebrated this achievement at the White House in 2025 with her family.[8] In 2016, Aikins' son JD had his book Hillbilly Elegy published, which describes his relationship with his mother and what she went through. In 2020, a film by the same name was released, based on the book; Aikins is portrayed in the film by Amy Adams.[9]

Marriages and family

Home where Beverly lived with her parents in between her marriages

Aikins has been married five times and divorced five times. She was first married in 1980 when 19 years old, in a relationship during which Lindsay Lewis was born.[1] Beverly then married Donald Bowman and they had one son: James Donald Bowman, better known as JD Vance, born when she was 24 years old. Aikins and Bowman divorced while JD was a toddler. Aikins then married Bob Hamel, and had her children's last names changed to his.[10] After they divorced, Aikins married and divorced two more times, the last with a man surnamed Aikins.[2] Between marriages, she and her children lived with her parents in Ohio or her sister Lori.[11]

Addiction and recovery

Addiction

Aikins relates her story to the national opioid epidemic, in which drug dependency often ruins a family unit. As a licensed practical nurse, Aikins had access to prescription painkillers while working in a hospital.[12] After taking prescription opioids, she developed an escalating dependency.[13] According to National Institute on Drug Abuse, the progression from misuse to illicit substances like heroin is an established trajectory of the opioid epidemic. Beverly experienced this progression, which affected her whole life. She recalls how she lost trust in her family and they never wanted to see her, and how she lost her job as a nurse. This addiction went on for decades.[13][14]

Recovery

Beverly Vance Aikins celebrates her 10th year of sobriety in a Roosevelt Room ceremony.

Recovery for Aikins from substance use disorder was not fast and often failed.[15] Her recovery was supported by attending sobriety meetings and moving into a sober living house.[14] Many in Aikins' family had to deal with addiction, and her recovery broke a multi-generational pattern.[13]

Aiming to transform her personal recovery into professional purpose, she successfully regained her nursing credentials and began working as a nurse at an addiction treatment facility in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. Through her recovery she has helped others,[16] cited as a representation that recovery was possible.[17] She also attends programs with the intention of helping attendants. She has said that some family members, such as cousins, still do not forgive her but her kids and grandkids all do and that she wants to help prevent her grandkids from making the choices she did.[18][19][20][21][22]

In April 2025, Aikins celebrated 10 years of sobriety in the Roosevelt Room of the White House.[23][24][25]

Relationship with JD and current life

Aikins hugging her son, JD Vance
Aikins with her son JD and grandson, Ewan

JD Vance and his mother had a rough relationship. After the car incident, Aikins lost custody of her children and JD and Lindsay were placed with her parents. Their relationship improved with time after Aikins went to recovery, before which they had no relationship. In JD's book Hillbilly Elegy, he writes that he had wished he had never met his mother, though at present they have a great relationship.[13][26][27][28]

While writing his memoir, JD asked his mom for permission to publish it; to which she agreed, explaining she wanted her son to get the sense of relief he sought through writing the book. When Vance was selected as the nominee for Vice President of the United States at the 2024 Republican National Convention, he had a speech written about his mom and asked if he could use it, to which she also agreed, wanting people to see that recovery is possible in the end. Aikins has said that she and her daughter speak everyday but that she and her son do not speak as much as she would like, due to how busy he is with his job and family. She said her son occasionally texts 'I love you', which brightens her day.[2][29][30][31][32] She said that while JD and her do not agree on everything with politics, they do not let this get in their relationship.[33][34]

JD Vance said of his mother at the 2024 Republican National Convention: "Our movement is about single moms like mine who struggled with money and addiction but never gave up."[35][13]

Hillbilly Elegy

Aikins' son wrote a 2018 memoir Hillbilly Elegy and sold rights to a same-named film (2020) about his life and the impact his mother's addiction and recovery had on him.[36][37] She gave JD permission to publish the book, knowing the book would not be favorable toward her, but felt hurt that she was not invited to a party he held to celebrate the book's best seller status with The New York Times.[37]

In the film adaptation of the book, her character is portrayed by Amy Adams, whom Aikins praised for her performance.[38] Aikins negotiated payment for permission to include her character.[37]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Prasad, Sumith (July 17, 2024). "Lindsay Lewis: Where is J.D. Vance's Sister Now?". The Cinemaholic. Retrieved July 8, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 Dr. Suzette Glasner (2025-09-04). Addiction, Forgiveness & Faith: VP JD Vance's Mom Bev Vance Aikins Tells Her Story | Ep. 20. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via YouTube.
  3. ↑ "Meet J.D. Vance's mum Beverly Aikins: a journey of addiction and redemption". South China Morning Post. 2024-08-02. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  4. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  5. ↑ Burack, Emily (January 20, 2025). "Get to Know J.D. Vance's Family". Town & Country. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
  6. ↑ Sanderson, Emily (2025-01-20). "Who is Beverly Aikins? JD Vance's mom attends inauguration ceremony". WLWT. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  7. ↑ Rajagopal, Shiv Shankar (2024-11-06). "Tragic Details About JD Vance's Mother Beverly". The List. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  8. ↑ Winland, Elise (2025-04-07). "JD Vance's mother celebrates 10 years of sobriety at the White House". CatholicVote org. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  9. ↑ "Who is JD Vance's mom? Nurse Beverly Aikins' journey of addiction and redemption". Yahoo Life. 2024-11-01. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  10. ↑ Hoff, Maya Marchel. "What does 'JD' stand for in JD Vance? A quick history of VP candidate's name changes". USA Today. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  11. ↑ Gomez, Henry J. (August 15, 2024). "How JD Vance's upbringing shaped his sharp-edged rhetoric about families". NBC News. Retrieved July 8, 2026.
  12. ↑ From Hillbilly Elegy to Healing: Bev Aikins’ Most Revealing Interview Yet | Ep. 20 Clip. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via www.youtube.com.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 McCreesh, Shawn (2024-09-26). "Vance's Mother Deals With Her Past and His Future". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  14. 1 2 Moorwood, Victoria. "'My mission.' Years after 'Hillbilly Elegy,' JD Vance's mom is telling her own story". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  15. ↑ 18K views · 246 reactions | Beverly Vance Aikins, mother of United States Vice President J.D. Vance, was in East Texas on Saturday to talk about faith and addiction recovery at a conference in Palestine. | KETK NBC. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via www.facebook.com.
  16. ↑ "Tyler Servant (@TylerServant) on X". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  17. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  18. ↑ KETK NBC (2026-05-23). Vice President J.D. Vance's mother speaks on recovery in Palestine. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via YouTube.
  19. ↑ "JD Vance's Mom Shows Us the Power of Forgiveness in Recovery | Psychology Today". www.psychologytoday.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  20. ↑ Zito, Salena (2024-10-25). "Vance homecoming: The recovery and redemption arc of Beverly Aikins". Washington Examiner. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  21. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  22. ↑ Team, WRD News (2025-05-02). "JD Vance Mother Sobriety Celebrated at White House". WRD News. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  23. ↑ Sanderson, Emily (2025-04-08). "JD Vance's mom celebrates 10th year of sobriety in White House ceremony". WLWT. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  24. ↑ Moorwood, Victoria (April 7, 2025). "JD Vance celebrates his mom's sobriety with White House ceremony". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2026-08-27.
  25. ↑ Stancy, Diana (2025-04-07). "JD Vance honors his mother at White House for reaching 10 years sobriety". Fox News. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  26. ↑ "Mother's Day: Revisiting JD Vance's complex relationship with his mother Beverly". The Times of India. 2025-05-12. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  27. ↑ TheColumbusDispatch (2025-09-09). JD Vance's mother, Beverly Vance Aikins, speaks about her relationship with son, addiction. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via YouTube.
  28. ↑ Middletown, Will Pavia. "JD Vance's mother enters the fray — to a mixed reception". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  29. ↑ WSJ News (2024-07-17). Watch: JD Vance Honors His Mother's Struggles During RNC Speech | WSJ News. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via YouTube.
  30. ↑ TheColumbusDispatch (2024-12-05). JD Vance's mom, Beverly Aikins, asks Ohio hometown of Middletown to honor him after 2024 Election. Retrieved 2026-06-17 – via YouTube.
  31. ↑ "Bev Aikins Speaks: Mother of VP JD Vance on Addiction, Healing & Forgiveness | Ep. 20 Premiere | Pelago". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  32. ↑ "Who Is Beverly Aikins? VP JD Vance Celebrates His Mother's Sobriety Milestone At White House". TimesNow. 2025-04-08. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  33. ↑ "'JD and I don't agree on everything': Vance's mom navigates politics, social media". Yahoo News. 2025-09-09. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  34. ↑ Moorwood, Victoria. "'JD and I don't agree on everything': Vance's mom navigates politics, social media". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  35. ↑ Popli, Nik (2024-07-18). "J.D. Vance: What Trump's Running Mate Said in His RNC Speech". TIME. Retrieved 2026-08-27.
  36. ↑ F; r; e; s; h; A; i; r (2016-08-17). "'Hillbilly Elegy' Recalls A Childhood Where Poverty Was 'The Family Tradition'". NPR. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  37. 1 2 3 Moorwood, Victoria. "'My mission.' Years after 'Hillbilly Elegy,' JD Vance's mom is telling her own story". The Enquirer. Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
  38. ↑ Lang, Kevin. "'Hillbilly Elegy' Movie vs. the True Story of J.D. Vance's Family". HistoryvsHollywood.com. Retrieved 2026-06-17.
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