Laurie White, retired Canadian RCMP officer, had no idea what had happened when she accompanied fellow officers to respond to a domestic violence call and found herself dumbfounded by the smoke that was coming from her leg. Her brain then makes the connection that one of the bullets flying her direction must have struck her.

Laurie would spend weeks in the hospital undergoing numerous surgeries before the decision would be made to amputate her leg. Naturally, Laurie’s adaptation to this life-changing event would take her through a tumultuous journey mired in depression, helplessness, and reframing how she saw herself.

What emerged from this harrowing timeline is a woman who was determined to return to work, reclaim her agency, and not allow the loss of a limb to define her. Laurie worked many more years, recently published a book entitled 10-33: An officer down steps back up, and spreads her message of hope and inspiration to all who have hit rock bottom.