“Wordlayer” was Lindy Boone’s early Twitter username, made up when she began sharing about her son’s, Ryan Corbin, accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury (TBI). She explained, “I loved the idea of laying my words down creatively to walk us into the next phase of life. I had a strong belief by that time that words are very powerful, and we treat them very loosely sometimes.”

On June 19, 2001, Corbin stepped through a skylight and fell three stories onto a cement floor. He was rushed to the UCLA Medical Center in Westwood in extremely critical condition with multiple internal injuries, severe internal bleeding, and a serious brain injury. The doctors did not expect him to live.

Boone recalled the moment she was notified about the accident, saying, “I was in Spain on vacation when I received the call from my sister, Debby. It was a horrendous 24-hour trip home.” The Boone family was thrown into the world of TBI, and their lives were forever divided into two halves – before and after.

As Corbin lingered between life and death in intensive care, the Boones decided to take action and appeared on such shows as Larry King Live, CNN News, and NBC Today, sharing their faith and asking millions of television viewers to pray for Corbin. That was the beginning of the roller coaster ride of TBI and a journey through suffering Boone had never known.

“It was the start of a decade of teaching me through suffering,” Boone shared. “I had never suffered in my life. I’d had a charmed childhood – a wonderful life, and then thrust into a limbo of ‘Is he going to be with us? Is he not ever coming back? Is he going to be in a coma forever?’”

Boone kept a journal through the first year and a half and was able to document enough to write a book titled Heaven Hears, released in 2013 by Tyndale House Publishers. The book received endorsements from Larry King, Roma Downey, Dr. Robert Schuller, Rick Warren, who was pastor and author of The Purpose Driven Life, and many others.

“One of the lessons through my journey was the idea that how you speak really matters to the trajectory of the next phase of your life,” said Boone.

Since Corbin’s fall, Boone has learned a great deal about traumatic brain injury and has come to a new understanding of the faithfulness of God and the power of our words during times of deepest needs. In 2003, the Boone family established a non-profit in Ryan’s name called Ryan’s Reach to help survivors of brain injury and their families and has been providing funds for TBI survivors to receive therapy ever since. The charity has also opened two homes to provide care exclusively for brain injury survivors and recently launched TBI Talk, a podcast for insights into brain injury recovery. It offers another resource for those who have loved ones in the same situation and who may want to hear stories of other families going through a similar journey.

In the 1970s, Cherry, Lindy, Debby, and Laury Boone recorded pop covers and several Christian albums as “The Boone Girls,” including their Grammy award-nominated album First Class. Debby Boone went on to become a solo artist, hitting the top of the US charts with “You Light Up My Life,” winning three Grammys throughout her music career and being nominated 10 times.

Lindy Boone has worked in the fitness industry as a group fitness instructor and personal trainer for 25 years. She currently resides in Southern California with her husband of 38 years, attorney Mike Michaelis. She has three adult children: Ryan, Jessica, and Tyler.

For more information about Lindy Boone, follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

For more information on Ryan’s Reach, visit their website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.