![\"White](\"https:\/\/magazine.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/legacy\/i\/WhiteFamilyF13650x469.jpg\" "\\"WhiteFamilyF13650x469\\"")
<\/a>Today, the family\u2014with the support of their neighbors and friends, the people of Boston and the Owen and Vanderbilt communities\u2014is moving forward. Kevin White says they believe that this year\u2019s events have put their lives in different perspective. While they are still adjusting to challenges, they are positive about their future and are making great steps in recovery.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis experience has given me the opportunity to step back from what I was doing, and ask if this is what I want to continue doing,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s like someone asking you, \u2018What do you want to be when you grow up?\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we were five feet in another direction that day, we might not be here. If we were five minutes earlier or later, none of this would have happened,\u201d he says. \u201cBut you can\u2019t dwell on all the ifs in your life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Healing and reassessment<\/h2>\n\n\u201cIf we were five feet in another direction that day, we might not be here. If we were five minutes earlier or later, none of this would have happened.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
Recognizing that other families have been devastated by the event, that lives were lost, and the best must be made out of a terrible situation, Kevin says, \u201cwe have to reassess our goals and priorities and who we are as people going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prior to the bombing, Kevin worked for a private equity firm in Chicago (focused, ironically enough, on distress situations). Feeling the need for a change, he left the firm in late 2012, and returned to Massachusetts, where he grew up. In the days leading up to April 15, he had been doing some private equity consulting work.<\/p>\n
Kevin, who was the least injured of the family, sustained damage to his arms, shins and thighs. He tore ligaments in his hips, and still has pieces of metal in his system that will work their way out over time. His mother, Mary Jo, broke a wrist and rib, and also sustained damage to her legs, but her main injuries have healed.<\/p>\n
As for his father, Kevin says, \u201che\u2019s walking around pretty good right now\u201d with a new prosthetic leg. \u201cHis progress is pretty astounding, in terms of getting comfortable with it. He\u2019s getting to know his limits and boundaries and navigating walking again. Mentally, he\u2019s very sharp,\u201d the younger White says. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say he\u2019s excited, but he\u2019s very happy to be home from the hospital. He was getting very tired of the food \u2026 He\u2019s very engaged in starting \u2018Life 2.0.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Now after his own recovery and helping his parents regain their health, Kevin is re-evaluating. \u201cI\u2019ve kind of had to reassess my career, and think about, \u2018What makes you happy?\u2019 contrasted to, \u2018What are you good at?\u2019\u201d he says. Those are questions he\u2019s still considering.<\/p>\n
Focused on positive outcomes<\/h2>\n
Kevin won\u2019t say much about the media coverage of the event or the bombers, stating only that his family is more focused on the future and the other survivors. When he thinks of positive experiences, he notes a few that stand out.<\/p>\n
First is the way his parents\u2019 community of about 2,500 people sponsored a 5K fundraising run to help with medical expenses for those injured. \u201cIt was a way for the town to express its support, not just for our family but for those who have been impacted by any type of hardship. The community realized it was one of them that was hurt. My father used to coach soccer in town, and all the people my age knew him because he had coached them,\u201d Kevin says. \u201cI think it was a way for people to understand that this could happen to any of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Second, he says, was a realization of how truly special the Owen community is. Of all the well wishes and donations, Kevin was particularly floored by the response from those connected to Owen and his time here.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things Owen really fosters is the sense of community,\u201d he says. \u201cWhile that phrase can sometimes be a clich\u00e9, I can be a testament to the reality. The outreach from my class, the class above me, the class below me, from people connected to Owen and Vanderbilt I\u2019d never even met was remarkable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vanderbilt taught Kevin White much about working with others in pursuit of the same goal, he says\u2014but also about options, responsibility and looking ahead, wherever the next road may lead.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve learned that there\u2019s more to life than what you think there is,\u201d he says. \u201cBut sometimes you have to go out and find it. And if you\u2019re given the chance to find it, you should.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After being injured in the Boston Marathon bombings, an Owen alumnus takes stock.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":370,"featured_media":10648,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[21],"class_list":["post-5893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-submain"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5893","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/370"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5893"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5893\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8507,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5893\/revisions\/8507"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10648"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\u201cIf we were five feet in another direction that day, we might not be here. If we were five minutes earlier or later, none of this would have happened.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
Recognizing that other families have been devastated by the event, that lives were lost, and the best must be made out of a terrible situation, Kevin says, \u201cwe have to reassess our goals and priorities and who we are as people going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prior to the bombing, Kevin worked for a private equity firm in Chicago (focused, ironically enough, on distress situations). Feeling the need for a change, he left the firm in late 2012, and returned to Massachusetts, where he grew up. In the days leading up to April 15, he had been doing some private equity consulting work.<\/p>\n
Kevin, who was the least injured of the family, sustained damage to his arms, shins and thighs. He tore ligaments in his hips, and still has pieces of metal in his system that will work their way out over time. His mother, Mary Jo, broke a wrist and rib, and also sustained damage to her legs, but her main injuries have healed.<\/p>\n
As for his father, Kevin says, \u201che\u2019s walking around pretty good right now\u201d with a new prosthetic leg. \u201cHis progress is pretty astounding, in terms of getting comfortable with it. He\u2019s getting to know his limits and boundaries and navigating walking again. Mentally, he\u2019s very sharp,\u201d the younger White says. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say he\u2019s excited, but he\u2019s very happy to be home from the hospital. He was getting very tired of the food \u2026 He\u2019s very engaged in starting \u2018Life 2.0.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Now after his own recovery and helping his parents regain their health, Kevin is re-evaluating. \u201cI\u2019ve kind of had to reassess my career, and think about, \u2018What makes you happy?\u2019 contrasted to, \u2018What are you good at?\u2019\u201d he says. Those are questions he\u2019s still considering.<\/p>\n
Focused on positive outcomes<\/h2>\n
Kevin won\u2019t say much about the media coverage of the event or the bombers, stating only that his family is more focused on the future and the other survivors. When he thinks of positive experiences, he notes a few that stand out.<\/p>\n
First is the way his parents\u2019 community of about 2,500 people sponsored a 5K fundraising run to help with medical expenses for those injured. \u201cIt was a way for the town to express its support, not just for our family but for those who have been impacted by any type of hardship. The community realized it was one of them that was hurt. My father used to coach soccer in town, and all the people my age knew him because he had coached them,\u201d Kevin says. \u201cI think it was a way for people to understand that this could happen to any of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Second, he says, was a realization of how truly special the Owen community is. Of all the well wishes and donations, Kevin was particularly floored by the response from those connected to Owen and his time here.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things Owen really fosters is the sense of community,\u201d he says. \u201cWhile that phrase can sometimes be a clich\u00e9, I can be a testament to the reality. The outreach from my class, the class above me, the class below me, from people connected to Owen and Vanderbilt I\u2019d never even met was remarkable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vanderbilt taught Kevin White much about working with others in pursuit of the same goal, he says\u2014but also about options, responsibility and looking ahead, wherever the next road may lead.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve learned that there\u2019s more to life than what you think there is,\u201d he says. \u201cBut sometimes you have to go out and find it. And if you\u2019re given the chance to find it, you should.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After being injured in the Boston Marathon bombings, an Owen alumnus takes stock.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":370,"featured_media":10648,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[21],"class_list":["post-5893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-submain"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5893","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/370"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5893"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5893\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8507,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5893\/revisions\/8507"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10648"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.owen.vanderbilt.edu\/vanderbiltbusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}