Bobby Petrocelli's story is one of personal triumph and hope following a devastating tragedy in his life. One night he went to bed in his suburban America (League City, Texas) home a happy man with a loving wife, but when he woke up dazed in his kitchen, his wife was dead and his life changed forever. A pickup had crashed into the wall of his bedroom driven by a man more than twice legally drunk. Now he tells his story nationwide to high school students, speaking of the consequences of drinking and driving.
A true story of rebuilding and remembrance in the wake of tragedy The September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center devastated investment banking and brokerage firm Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. (KBW) in every way possible. KBW's headquarters were located on the eighty-eighth and eighty-ninth floors of 2 World Trade Center and as a result of the attacks, the company lost one-third of its staff. The enormity of KBW's plight raises the question about how much a single company can lose and still conjure the strength and resources to regenerate itself. Triumph over Tragedy is the story of a group of people with indomitable spirit who literally fought their way out of the collapsing building to revive their company, support each other, and care for the victims' families. This inspirational book captures the experiences of KBW's survivors, including that of author and KBW CEO John Duffy who lost his son, Christopher, and longtime partner, co-CEO and Chairman Joseph Berry. Triumph over Tragedy introduces readers to the individuals behind the news stories: those representing a nation of people and businesses struggling to cope. This book also provides valuable lessons on rebuilding, which are reflected in the personal stories told by the KBW staff and the choices made at KBW regarding leadership, support for the families of those missing or dead, and methods for reestablishing the business.
Veteran journalists Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge have written the definitive inside look at the Boston Marathon bombings with a unique, Boston-based account of the events that riveted the world. From the Tsarnaev brothers' years leading up to the act of terror to the bomb scene itself (which both authors witnessed first-hand within minutes of the blast), from the terrifying police shootout with the suspects to the ultimate capture of the younger brother, Boston Strong: A City's Triumph over Tragedy reports all the facts-and so much more. Based on months of intensive interviews, this is the first book to tell the entire story through the eyes of those who experienced it. From the cop first on the scene, to the detectives assigned to the manhunt, the authors provide a behind-the-scenes look at the investigation. More than a true-crime book, Boston Strong also tells the tragic but ultimately life-affirming story of the victims and their recoveries and gives voice to those who lost loved ones. With their extensive reporting, writing experience, and deep ties to the Boston area, Sherman and Wedge create the perfect match of story, place, and authors. If you're only going to read one book on this tragic but uplifting story, this is it.
The author presents a contemporary model and system of recovery that recognizes the inherent human capacity to move forward, not in spite of crisis, but as a direct result.
Thousands have already been encouraged by this man's inspiring story. It was the worst imaginable nightmare. In the midst of total darkness, I was searching for those most precious to me. . . . I struggled to maintain my footing on icy pavement. I was enveloped in darkness and the only sound was the wind, howling as if someone had turned on the sound track to a horror movie. AndrŽ Thornton's nightmare turned out to be reality. On an icy turnpike, his van lay overturned with his wife and two children trapped inside. An hour later, he learned the awful news. It was as if a limb had been cruelly amputated from my body. Where does a man go when those, whom he loves the dearest, are suddenly, without warning, wrenched from his life? For Andre Thornton, there was only one place to go. Years spent nurturing and developing a relationship with God were his sole of strength. Could God heal such agonizing pain? Could He put the pieces of Andre's life back together? Could any good come from such a devastating loss? In the following weeks and months, AndrŽ Thornton found answers to those questions and discovered God's incredible power to heal even the most agonizing hurt. He learned that he could, indeed, experience Triumph Born of Tragedy.
Triumph over Tragedy by Jay Fox, a popular entertainer known both in his home, Bermuda, as well as in the USA and internationally, is the personal story of his journey from a beginning as a mixed-blood child of a single mother of limited means in a prejudicial and insular society to a highly popular singer, songwriter, performer, and respected hotel manager. How he handled this challenging double life and how it affected his growing need for meaning in his life leads to a stormy personal situation and his relocation to Crossville, a small town in Tennessee. When all was going well personally, with a family and a horse-training ranch, and professionally, with a busy schedule of performances and an enthusiastic following of loyal fans, tragedy struck when a wasp sting turned into an infectious disease, diagnosed as group-A streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, which cost him his leg and threatened his very life. His faith in God and the support of his family, friends, and fans have led him to a future he could never have anticipated.
Jack Olsen's Last Man Standing is the gripping story of Geronimo Pratt, war hero and community leader, who was framed by the FBI in one of the greatest travesties of justice in American history. Geronimo Pratt did not commit the murder for which he served twenty-seven nightmarish years. As a UCLA student, though, he had led the Los Angeles Chapter of the Black Panther Party, and became a target of the FBI. Here is the spellbinding saga of Pratt, his heroic lawyers, Johnnie Cochran and Stuart Hanlon, and the Reverend James McCloskey, who overcame all the odds to bring the truth to light and free Geronimo.
Tragedy to Triumph-The Story of Tom's Heart provides an up-close and personal look at the journeys of two individuals facing death as they present their individual perspectives as the donor family and the recipient. There are very few stories in life that grip you like the loss of a child. When that story hits home, it can feel like your very heart is being ripped out. This story is about life and death. When a family member or friend suffers end-stage organ failure, the pain is different but very real. Loved ones watch as you wither away before their eyes dying, waiting, and hoping for the ultimate gift, the gift of life, so they can go on living. Tragedy to Triumph-The Story of Tom's Heart is the harrowing and heart-wrenching tragedy that struck him and his family. At the worst moment any family should ever have to deal with, the parents said 'yes' to organ, eye, and tissue donation so the lives of others could be saved and enhanced. For Tom's mother, it offered hope in the midst of despair, a purpose in the midst of tragedy, and light in the midst of the darkest night of her life. By saying yes to donation, another mother and family did not have to wonder, wait, or face the death of their son, brother, or friend. Pete Radigan, who was in end-stage heart failure at Columbia Hospital, unsure if he would live or die, received Tom's heart-the gift of life. This is their story...
On September 20, 2011, Kimya Motley pulled up to the Little Mountain Christian Child Care Center to drop off her daughter for before and after care. Within minutes, her estranged husband, Terrence Roberson, would shoot Kimya and his stepdaughter, Corinne, leaving them for dead in the parking lot of the school. How could her husband who promised to love her "until death do us part" come to take that vow so literally? How could she have missed the signs leading up to that day? In Born of Violence, Kimya chronicles her journey from growing up in a home filled with domestic violence and neighborhoods filled with sexual horrors and unhealthy peer relationships to the road of abuse in all of her intimate partner relationships which led her to marriage and that fateful morning. She penned this memoir in hopes that the knowledge and education she has acquired since the shooting will help others identify what it takes to bounce back after tragedy and use those experiences as a stepping stone for success in their own lives.
