We were surprised and delighted when Bethany Hamilton's brother Noah told us he thought Bethany "might" be on the island after all during Honolulu 2011. She was supposed to be on the mainland doing a media blitz for Soul Surfer, the theatrically-released movie based on Bethany's inspirational recovery after a shark bit off her left arm while surfing on Kaua‘i.
But all we knew was she was on the island.
She could show up.
She hoped to show up.
We'll let you know.
They did let us know. During the opening worship session of the conference on Thursday night of general session, the call came in. Bethany was on her way. In fact, Bethany might actually be in the house now. But where? And exactly when? When HIM co-founder Dan Chun got on stage to introduce her, even he didn't know where she was: Was she in the ballroom at the back? Would someone walk her down the aisle? When he said her name, where would she appear? In fact, she was backstage waiting in the wings with Bethany's friend and ours, Sumo Sato.
None of this was rehearsed. It was pure Bethany sharing herself and her story. Thank you, Bethany! You blessed so many that night!
Learn more about Bethany, her loves, her life, her soul passions on her website at: http://bethanyhamilton.com/