William Croyle

I Choose to Be Happy: a School Shooting Survivor's Triumph over Tragedy William Croyle

ABC News journalist Diane Sawyer summarizes this book perfectly in one sentence: "Missy breaks your heart, puts it back together again, and makes you a believer - in forgiveness, faith, and how the strength of one girl can change the world."
Missy Jenkins Smith was one of eight students in a prayer group randomly shot by 14-year-old Michael Carneal on Dec. 1, 1997, in the lobby of Heath High School in Paducah, Kentucky. Three girls were killed. Missy, a 15-year-old sophomore at the time, was paralyzed from the chest down. But Missy didn't see her disability as an end. Just hours after the tragedy, she forgave Carneal and took back her life. Over the subsequent 15 years, with no malice and a focus on her physical and mental rehabilitation, Missy would graduate from Heath, earn a bachelor's degree in social work from Murray State University, become a counselor for troubled youth at a day treatment center, get married and give birth to two healthy sons. Missy, now 32, has received numerous honors over the years for her determination and courage, including being named "Kentuckian of the Year" and one of Ladies' Home Journal's "Most Fascinating Women."