2000, ISBN: 9781577332268

Life can change suddenly. A life-long athlete and runner, Joyce Lance was out doing her morning run in preparation for an upcoming marathon, and nearly lost her life after suddenly being … More...

Life can change suddenly. A life-long athlete and runner, Joyce Lance was out doing her morning run in preparation for an upcoming marathon, and nearly lost her life after suddenly being hit by a car at 50 mph. October 20, 2000, Joyce Lance, a fi fty-two year old Houstonian, a transplant from the stark heartlands of Minnesota, raised on a farm and a survivor of past adversity, was about to face her greatest personal obstacle. At five am, only four miles into her twenty-mile training run, Joyce was hit, head-on, by a speeding car, sending her to the hard, wet, morning pavement, broken, bleeding, and barely alive. So begins her new passage into survival¿and an arduous recovery fueled by love, support, and spirit. Her Longest Marathon is an investigative tale written by a medical doctor using hospital charts, police records, interviews, and letters to compose this account of a remarkable woman, assumed dead by an EMS fi reman who thought she would make a good organ donor. Rich with inspiration, this book reveals the special courage of an extraordinary personal recovery, from the gory accident, to a trauma center¿s hours of resuscitation, numerous surgeries, and months of physical and mental rehabilitation¿as seen through the eyes of a son, family, friends, doctors, nurses, and the resiliently disciplined and unwavering faith of Joyce herself. Full of the complexity of human drama, Her Longest Marathon is a compelling tale of inner strength and equanimity. ¿Because not many people are marathon runners who get hit by a car going fi fty miles an hour, my accident is an extreme example of what can happen. I believe I can help others deal with unwanted events in their lives. ¿I truly believe that we all have it within ourselves to draw from this inner strength to overcome and conquer the unexpected. ¿We all have the ability to change and to overcome obstacles. It¿s deep within us. We just have to fi nd it inside.¿ ¿Joyce Lance Media ><