CONTINUED ON PAGE 14 This is Your Day. By John O’Leary, Keynote Speaker at the 2022 NFDA Convention & Trade Show in Baltimore My Name is John O’Leary I’m 43 years old. I’m married to my beautiful wife, Beth, and we’re raising four wonderful kids together. I’m a college graduate. I own a business that’s taken me all over the world doing a job I love. But at one time, none of that seemed likely. A Curious Boy When I was a nine-year-old boy, I was burned on 100% of my body. I was in my garage playing with matches and gasoline – just like I had seen the older boys on my block do. A fire exploded, consuming my garage, sending me flying back against the wall and turning my whole world upside down. I woke up in a hospital bed where doctors had given me a 1% chance to live. Through all the pain, I remember hearing my mom’s voice and asking her if I would be okay. My mom had the courage not to comfort me with a lie but to instead ask: “John, do you want to die? It’s your choice, not mine.” I thought for a moment and answered: “Mom, I don’t want to die. I want to live.” That was the start of the rest of my life. I spent five months in the hospital, endured dozens of surgeries and underwent years of physical therapy. I survived. And when life finally settled back into normal, all I wanted was for it to stay that way. A Tiny Spark For years, my family and I kept that chapter of our lives private. We didn’t discuss the fire, what we had endured, or all we had learned. That changed 20 years later when my parents decided to write a book. They called it Overwhelming Odds, and it told the story of our family’s experience. We printed Live Inspired! Pub. 1 Issue 4, 2022 13
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