‘Begin Again’: Yvette Hoffman Finds Healing in Classroom After Assassination Attempt

For the past year, staff members and students at Fernbrook Elementary School have been waiting for the return of a beloved coworker.

Now, Yvette Hoffman is back where she belongs—finding healing in a kindergarten classroom.

Hoffman, an Educational Support Professional who floats between classrooms to assist teachers and support young students, missed the entire previous school year following an attack at her home.

On June 14, 2025, Vance Boelter, posing as a police officer, attacked Hoffman and her family at their Champlin residence. During the struggle to push Boelter out the door, Hoffman was shot eight times—six times in the side and twice more during the confrontation. What followed was a week in the hospital and months of grueling physical and emotional recovery.

It was only after Boelter was sentenced in federal court that Hoffman felt secure enough to step back into her role at Fernbrook Elementary.

“When I knew he was never getting out, I thought, ‘okay, I can come back now,'” Hoffman said.

On June 14, 2025, Vance Boelter dressed as a police officer and came to the homes of Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman and Minnesota Sen. John Hoffman.

Finding Healing at School

Preparing for a new school year brings familiar routines—getting classrooms ready, gathering supplies, and reuniting with colleagues.

Hoffman brought back her trusted assistant, a stuffed animal named Muffin, who helps students learn their ABCs.

“I get the Sunday scaries. It’s a real thing, and I know all the teachers get them and the kids get them,” Hoffman shared. “But we’re all in this together.”

While the physical and emotional scars remain, Hoffman views her return to Fernbrook as more than just a job—it’s part of her recovery process.

“It feels like I’m home. It also feels surreal,” she said. “From killing to kindergarten—how do you merge the two? But I’m grateful I’m here and that I can come back and begin again.”

She added: “It is the belief that where there is evil in the world, there’s also such goodness, and there’s goodness in little ones.”

Yvette Hoffman holds up a stuffed animal named ‘Muffin,’ who helps kids with their ABCs.

‘Girls Can Do Anything’

Though Hoffman was away for the school year, her connection to the school community remained strong.

Last December, around Christmas, she made a brief surprise visit to see former students, who inundated her with hugs and some very pointed questions.

One student asked her directly: “Mrs. Hoffman, you got shot. Did you get the bad guy?”

“I just looked at them and said, ‘oh, those are grown-up problems, and you are safe and you don’t have to worry about that,'” Hoffman recalled. “‘But girls can do anything, because I kicked him out.'”

Now back to work full-time, Hoffman has been welcomed with warm embraces from fellow educators and staff members every day.

As she steps back into daily school life, she is choosing not to dwell on what was taken from her family, but to focus on the simple joy of being Mrs. Hoffman again.

Yvette Hofffman (in blue), receives a hug from Kindergarten teacher Alyssa Burgett during one of her first days back to work at Fernbrook.

“Boy, I’m going to be tired after that first week,” she said, laughing. “But it’ll be so fun, and I’m so happy to be back in such a loving, wonderful place.”

While federal proceedings have concluded, state charges against Vance Boelter remain pending. Hoffman says she plans to attend every remaining court hearing.

“He needs to see our face every single time,” she said, “because now he doesn’t have a mask, he doesn’t have a gun, and he’s not wearing a costume.”

Related: Rep. Hortman and Husband Killed, Sen. Hoffman and Wife Shot in ‘Politically-Motivated Assassination’

Champlin | Maple Grove