Severed Sacredness 

“It’s Jessie. She’s hurt. She’s hurt real bad.” 

These are the words that interrupted Lisa Boone’s patio lunch in 2009. They interrupted her entire life. On the other end of the phone, her son went on to explain that Lisa’s 15-year-old daughter Jessie had skied into the base of an Aspen tree while on a youth group trip to Colorado. 

In her newly released book, “Severed Sacredness: The Miraculous Journey of Jessie Boone,” Lisa outlines the details of the accident that derailed her life, and the road they took to rebuild it. Anyone would call the events improbable. Lisa calls them miracles. 

Following the emergency surgery to debride her frontal lobe and remove both sides of her skull, Jessie spent 40 grueling days and nights in the Colorado PICU before returning to Oklahoma via medi-flight. Despite multiple medical setbacks, the Boones continued to champion their daughter’s recovery through their unwavering belief and medical advocacy. Eventually, Jessie received skull reconstruction surgery and her recovery continued to progress. 

Though some effects of her injury will always linger, Jessie is employed part-time now and enjoys traveling and trying new things. “She is joyful,” Lisa describes. “She is the sweetest, kindest human that you would ever hope to meet. She’s like a walking scripture.” 

In both her book and conversation, Lisa does not focus on her daughter’s positive outcome. She knows that is not a guaranteed ending for anyone encountering hardship. She focuses instead on a truth more universal: “Even in the darkest forests, we are not alone.” Lisa admits, “There were moments when this didn’t feel true, and during one of them, Lisa promised that if God brought Jessie through her injury, then she’d put it all in a book. “God did. And so I’m keeping my promise.” 

In her book, Lisa shares a series of odd-defying events. She tells how Jessie’s uncle happened to be on the same mountain the day of the accident, and explains how Jessie repeatedly overcame obstacles that experts predicted she wouldn’t. She shares how community members, strangers and nurses offered just the right support at just the right time, and the unbelievable moments between. 

“I have so many beautiful stories about hope showing up right in the middle of the hard times,” Lisa says. “I want everyone who needs that hope to get their hands on my book. Or my email address. I want them to know they are never, ever alone.” 

In addition to telling Jessie’s incredible story, “Severed Sacredness” also includes a resource section with specific and meaningful ways to extend help to others encountering hard times. Learn more about Lisa’s story at severedsacredness.com.