“WHEN LIFE GETS YOU DOWN, RISE UP!” by Kacey McCallister, Covenant Communications, $16.99, 250 pages (nf)
Kacey McCallister was only 6 years old when a terrible accident left doctors with no choice than to amputate both of the Wyoming boy’s legs near the tops of his thighs. In his book he recounts his ability to physically and mentally rise up and overcome challenges.
After being discharged from Primary Children’s Hospital, doctors advised McCallister’s parents to not complete tasks for this new double-amputee. They explained that, in the long run, it was better for him to figure out how to manage his new body on his own. Kacey attributed this advice to helping form the mental stamina he needed to continue living a full life and complete tasks others might assume were impossible.
McCallister didn’t look back on the leg-filled life he had formerly enjoyed; instead, he looked to the future and focused on competing in sports. During his school years in Oregon, McCallister played basketball, baseball, football, joined running teams and went to the state championships for wrestling. He went on to serve a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Arizona and eventually married Jennifer Sullivan.
The McCallisters are the parents of five children, including a special needs boy adopted from Ukraine. As their family grew, McCallister continued honing his athletic abilities. In 2016, he entered a Spartan race. After finishing his first Spartan, Kacey went on to finished three increasingly difficult Spartan races within 12 months of each other, earning the rare honor of becoming a Trifecta athlete in 2017.
“Rise Up!” is an extremely motivational book and throughout it, McCallister emphasizes the importance of how mental tenacity can overcome any kind of physical disability. This book’s writing is easy to read and McCallister admirably recounts details in his life with no self-pity.
“Rise Up!” Is a clean book with nothing offensive in it.
A graduate of Western Oregon University and motivational speaker, McCallister lives in Oregon with his family.
Elizabeth Reid thinks the Great Depression is fascinating, so she earned bachelor’s degrees in both economics and history. A wife and mother, she blogs at agoodreid.blogspot.com.