A New Day

Fourth of July celebrations are just around the corner. Fireworks booths are popping up on corner lots throughout our cities. We’re getting ready for picnics and parties. Everyone, that is, but the firemen who stand ready to respond, hoping to squelch errant sparks before they become out-of-control wildfires.

Dora Barilla’s A New Day is a tearful yet triumphant story of one fireman, her husband, who was tragically and almost fatally injured responding to a call. What better time to remember the men and women who work so hard to make our summer celebration so beautiful and safe?

On September 11, 2009 Dora Barilla and her family debut “A New Day” at the Graziado Executive Center at Pepperdine University across from “Heroes Garden”. This was a small quiet gathering of family and friends honoring God for the miracle her family was given and to pay it forward to the fallen and injured soldiers fighting for our freedoms. The Heroes Garden was created at Pepperdine to honor the memory of Americans who lost their lives to terrorists on 9-11-01, and particularly to honor Pepperdine alumnus Thomas E. Burnett, Jr., who died on Flight 93. The Heroes Garden is a revered space and was chosen as a symbol of remembrance and to pay the miracle forward to other families in need or experiencing tragedy. Graziado means “Thanks be to God” making this location the perfect spot to honor God and our injured soldiers and first responders.

In A New Day, Dora Barilla writes of how faith helped her and her family get through a life-changing event. How did faith or a belief in a higher power helped you deal with major life traumas?