Name: James B.

City: Phoenix, AZ

Brain Injury: Severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): I sustained my TBI on October 2012, the same month that I returned home from serving four years in the United States Navy. I was thrown from my motorcycle 35’ into a dirt field, landing on my head sustaining a severe TBI. I was on life-support for a week, followed by a month long coma.

Explanation of mask:  My TBI is the ashes in which the Phoenix that is on fire for the Lord and intends to make a significant impact within the Brain Injury Community was born. It is only because of God’s Love and grace, he allowed me to survive and excel in my recovery. He used my TBI to restore my relationship with Him and become the person he intended me to be.  Through many years of rehab addressing my many deficits, I developed the skills needed to return to school where I thrived. I was accepted to GCU (Grand Canyon University) and will be graduating in December 2018. Although having to learn life’s new “norm” has been a long road of challenges, I would still choose this norm over my pre-accident norm.  My TBI doesn’t define me, but instead I define the presence and role my TBI has within my life.